Getting Ahead of Myself
by sailor8t
Summary: Sequel to What I Am. Season 5 rewrite.
1. Chapter 1

Buffy and Her Friends belong to Joss Whedon and a bunch of suits. I'm adjusting their realities for fun, not profit, as I own nothing and have the credit report to prove it.  
We catch up with our heroines soon after the end of _What I Am_...which you should read first.  


* * *

* * *

Buffy again woke to the sound of retching. She hurried from their empty bed to find Willow laid across the toilet seat. When the redhead finished, Buffy helped her to her feet and back to bed. "You're going to the doctor today," Buffy said firmly.

Willow felt too bad to argue with her. She closed her eyes and moved the cool cloth down over them.

A few moments later, there were three tentative knocks. "C'mon in," Buffy called.

Joyce, Tara, and Faith filed in. Joyce asked first, "Is Willow all right?"

Willow sighed while Buffy answered, "No."

"Can we do anything?" Tara asked.

Buffy looked at Willow before answering, and Willow shook her head cautiously. "Not right now," Buffy replied.

Willow moved the washcloth and leaned up on her elbow. "I'm okay," she said to the assemblage.

"You're going to the doctor anyway," Buffy said, and Willow rolled her eyes.

Willow babbled all the way home from the doctor. Buffy, her lips in a tight line, drove carefully and tried to keep her emotions in check.

"I can't be pregnant, Buffy," Willow said. "It's not physically possible. There's got to be some mistake."

"We'll talk about it at home."

"No, we won't. You'll go out and patrol all night, and pretend that everything is okay. And it's not. There's something really weird going on."

"So we'll call Giles. He specializes in weird. Just, can we please not talk about it any more until we get home? Please?"

Willow fell silent and closed her eyes. Her brain searched frantically for any reasonable explanation, and came up empty, so it continued to spin in hyperdrive.

"Will, you have to remember to breathe," Buffy said calmly.

"Huh?" Willow opened her eyes with a start as Buffy pulled into the driveway.

"We have enough time to call Giles before I have to pick up Mom and Faith."

Willow scooted out of the seat. "I'm not calling him."

Buffy sighed. "Fine. I'll call him."

"Nuh unh," Willow argued. "No need to drag him into this."

"C'mon, Will, be reasonable." Buffy opened the front door and waited for Willow to enter.

"I'm being perfectly reasonable. The test was defective."

"Three times? I don't think so."

"Can we at least wait for the blood tests to come back?" Willow asked. "Please?" She gave Buffy her best lost puppy eyes.

Buffy sighed. "All right. But after that, we're calling him."

"Okay," Willow acquiesced.

"Now go put your feet up or whatever it is you're supposed to do."

"Buffy!"

"I don't want to hear it, Willow. You haven't eaten since when? And you need to rest."

"I'm not an invalid."

"And I'm not the queen of Spain. But that doesn't have anything to do with anything either. The doctor said you need to rest. Go rest." Buffy's tone made it clear Willow would lose this round.

Willow, knowing she was beaten, sighed heavily and headed upstairs. Once she was out of sight, Buffy sank on the couch and held her head in her hands. Her mind raced, and none of the outcomes were good.

* * *

"B, can I ask you a question?" Faith asked as they walked out the back gate of a cemetery.

Buffy looked at her quizzically. She thought about saying, 'you just did,' but changed her mind when she saw Faith's expression. "Sure," Buffy answered.

"What's love feel like?"

Buffy stopped. "Wow, Faith, ask something hard, why don't you?"

"C'mon, B, I'm serious." Faith turned to look at Buffy.

"Ok." Buffy adjusted her thinking and began walking again. "This about Tara?"

"Yeah." Faith fell into step beside Buffy.

"This about what you feel or how Tara feels?"

"Both." Faith kicked a pebble.

"Well," Buffy started, "if you want to know how Tara feels, you should ask her."

"I thought I should know how I feel first." Faith kicked the same pebble again.

"How's that?"

"That's what I asked you."

"You like Tara."

"Duh." Faith kicked the pebble again.

"How do you feel when you're with her?"

Faith smiled. "Good."

"You need to tell me more than that."

"Well, how do you feel when you're with Red?"

"We're talking about you," Buffy said.

"C'mon, B, help me out a little."

"All right," Buffy answered after a moment. "When I'm with Willow, I don't need anything else."

Faith nodded but didn't say anything.

"So?" Buffy prompted, "you feel like that around Tara?"

"Yeah."

"Then you got it bad," Buffy grinned.

"Guess I do." Faith smiled back.

"What're you going to do about it?"

"I dunno. I never did anything like this."

"That's not what you said before."

"That was sex," Faith shrugged. "I never had a girlfriend before or anything."

"Oh," Buffy said as the light came on.

Faith ignored her and continued. "I dunno how I'm s'posed to act or anything."

"Tara likes you, Faith. Just be yourself. And be honest with her."

Faith snorted. "You make it sound easy."

"If she's the one, it is." Buffy vaulted the low stone wall of another cemetery.

Faith was right behind her. "I'm gonna hold you to that, B."

Buffy laughed and broke into a trot. This cemetery was closed to burials and was usually quiet. Faith caught up to her and they both slowed, turning in the same direction. They stealthily approached the noise.

Dust billowed from a mausoleum, and vampires carrying buckets trekked in and out. They counted 12 moving around, and figured there were more inside. Buffy pulled Faith away. They moved out of range and compared notes. Faith wanted to attack immediately, but Buffy persuaded her to return during the day to take a closer look.

They continued their rounds. In the last graveyard on the tour, they encountered another group of vampires. Six were in view, and after the fighting started, two more appeared. The Slayers made quick work of them, and high-fived each other when they finished.

"Let's go through the park before we head home," Faith said.

Buffy shrugged. It was on the way, and they frequently caught vampires preying on couples too stupid to court indoors. Tonight, it was quiet, and they walked home without talking.

Willow was asleep when Buffy returned from patrolling. Tara, she knew was awake by the soft murmur of her conversation with Faith. Buffy stood over the bed for a few minutes, watching the rise and fall of Willow's chest. When Willow's brow furrowed, Buffy leaned over and kissed her forehead. "I'm home," she said softly, and Willow immediately quieted.

The redhead rolled over and put her back to Buffy. Buffy watched her for a few moments more before stripping and heading to the shower.


	2. Chapter 2

"How was patrol?" Tara asked.

"Good," Faith answered. She shrugged out of her jacket and hung it on the door.

"I made you some sandwiches. They're in the fridge."

Faith smiled. "Thanks. I'll be right back. Want anything?"

"Water? Please?"

"Sure."

Faith hurried downstairs, found what she was after, and returned as quickly as she was able. She heard the shower start as she closed the bedroom door. Tara took her water, and watched Faith wolf down both sandwiches in quick succession. Then she drained a can of Coke and let out an enormous belch. "Scuse me."

"You're excused."

Faith got up from the bed and put the paper plate, napkin, and empty can in the trash. She paced the length of the bed a couple times.

"Something wrong?"

Faith stopped and turned to Tara. "No."

"Why are you pacing?"

Faith shrugged. "Too much energy?" she suggested.

Tara smiled. "You're awake, and I'm awake, and it's a lovely night. Why don't we go out back and watch the stars for a while?"

"Okay."

"Okay," Tara said, and got up from the bed. She pulled the quilt off and handed it to Faith.

They went downstairs as quietly as possible. At the back door, Tara turned off the bug light and made sure the screen door didn't slam. In the middle of the yard, Faith spread the quilt with a careless flap. Tara looked up for a few moments before deciding to lie with her feet toward the house.

Faith followed Tara down, and fished for her hand once they were settled. "Pretty," she said softly.

"It is," Tara agreed. She squeezed Faith's hand.

"B was really quiet tonight," Faith volunteered.

"Oh?"

"Like she had something really big on her mind."

"Probably worried about Willow," Tara guessed.

"Maybe."

"I worry about you when you're out there."

Faith rolled onto her elbow. "Why?"

"I don't want anything to happen to you."

"Nothin's gonna happen," Faith said confidently.

"You don't know that," Tara answered.

"I do," Faith said firmly. "I'm good. The only time I got hurt really bad, it was B who did it."

Tara reached with her free hand to push Faith's dark hair behind her ear. She wanted to say a dozen different things, but was certain that any of them would end this moment. Instead of speaking, she moved her hand to Faith's neck and urged her down.

Faith didn't need any more encouragement. She leaned down and began kissing Tara. When Tara moved both of her arms around Faith, Faith lowered herself beside Tara. Their kisses were soft and easy, and tapered away slowly because they both knew they had things to discuss before going any further.

Faith started. "I'm leavin' for Cleveland at the end of July."

"I can't go then, Faith."

"I know."

"I don't want you to go, either."

"I have to," Faith told her quietly.

After a long silence, Tara said, "It'll be less than a year, and I can see you during breaks."

"That what you want?" Faith asked cautiously.

"No, it's not what I want. I don't see any other way." Tara sighed. "I looked into transferring, but it's too late. I'd lose a year of credits and my scholarship."

Silence fell between them again until Faith said, "This sucks."

"Hugely," Tara agreed.

"I don't wanna be away from you, Tara," Faith said, and kissed Tara before the blonde could answer. When they came up for air, Faith added, "Ever."

"Me either," Tara gasped, and sucked Faith's lower lip into her mouth.

The longer they kissed, the harder it became for Faith to maintain her control. After a particularly torrid exchange, she panted into Tara's ear, "Love you."

"I love you, too, Faith," Tara answered, and pulled the Slayer's lips back to her own.

Faith stopped suddenly and pushed herself up. "I, uh, I, I never," she began.

Tara shushed her. "I know. Now shut up and kiss me."

The stars had turned several degrees by the time they grew tired. Faith settled them with Tara's head on her shoulder, and watched Tara's finger draw designs on the sky. Her voice grew sleepier until she faded out, and Faith soon followed her into sleep.

Buffy again woke up alone. She checked the time and rolled to the edge of the bed. As she stretched, she heard the now familiar noise of Willow's morning sickness, and her own stomach tightened into a knot as she crossed the room.

Buffy rinsed two washcloths in cool water and put one in Willow's hand before kneeling beside her. Buffy's hand made small circles over Willow's back while the redhead regained her composure.

When she recovered, Willow pushed herself up. Buffy supported her, and Willow let her. They sat on the bedside and looked at the floor instead of each other.

"There's got to be a mistake. It's the flu or something," Willow insisted.

"Okay," Buffy said numbly. Every possibility terrified her, especially the three closest to the front of her mind: Willow had cheated on her; Willow was suffering from some exotic disease; or something supernatural was afflicting her. She hadn't decided which of the three was worse.

As if she read Buffy's mind, Willow said, "I swear I haven't been with anyone else, Buffy."

"I know, Willow," Buffy answered evenly.

"I swear," Willow repeated urgently.

Buffy turned and found Willow looking at her. "I know," she repeated, and kissed Willow's cheek. "Lie down until you feel better." Buffy pushed Willow's hair away from her face. "I love you."

Willow smiled tightly and bolted for the bathroom.


	3. Chapter 3

Outside, Faith woke first. Tara slept on her shoulder, and Faith used the early golden light to admire Tara's features. She remembered what she had said last night, and Tara's response, and began to grin. Then she noticed Buffy standing in the doorway. Buffy crooked her finger. Faith nodded, kissed Tara's forehead, and eased herself away.

"What's up?"

"Wanna go for a run?"

"You couldn't come out and ask?" Faith demanded.

"No, cause I knew you'd say no," Buffy answered.

"Damn right," Faith growled, and let Buffy sweat for a few seconds. "Yeah, gimme a minute to change."

"All right." Buffy let Faith pass. While she waited for her to return, she started coffee, and got some cash so they could get mochas.

Faith reappeared shortly. She had changed her leathers and boots for cutoffs and sneakers, and they started. When it became apparent to that Buffy had no goal in mind, Faith set their course. Buffy was glad for the opportunity to burn off some of her anxiety, and when she felt better, suggested that they head toward home by way of the coffee shop. Faith agreed, as long as she could have "real coffee, not that crap you drink."

They took two chais and a dozen donuts back home with them. Both Joyce and Tara were up, showered and dressed when they arrived. Joyce was reading the paper, and Tara was keeping her company. Faith hurried off to shower and dress for work. Buffy fidgeted around the kitchen, unable to stay in one place for more than a few seconds, and hurried off for her own shower as soon as she heard Faith end hers.

Willow, washcloth on her forehead, dozed on their bed, and Buffy paused to look at her before stripping off her sweaty clothes. When she came from the shower, Willow was gone. Buffy dressed quickly and hurried downstairs. "Willow?" she called from the stairs.

"In the kitchen," Willow answered.

Buffy went to the kitchen. Willow was drinking tea and looking over the morning paper. Buffy got herself coffee and a donut before taking the stool next to Willow. "Feel better?"

"Yeah. How was patrol?"

"Weird. There's a bunch of digging going on in one of the mausoleums. Faith and I will head over there this afternoon."

"And in the meantime?" Willow asked.

"I know. We need to talk."

"We do." After a long pause, Willow asked, "What are we going to do? I'm not ready to be a mom. I don't even know how to be a mom. It's not like I had a good example. And diapers. I don't have a clue about them. Or what babies eat. Or anything else."

"Willow," Buffy said urgently, to interrupt the panicked babble. "I have to tell you something."

"What?" Willow asked distractedly.

"Neither do I."

"That doesn't help, Buffy."

"C'mon, Will, you know you'll make with the research. Mom will help us. Everything will be okay. I promise."

"You don't want me to leave?" Willow asked in a small voice.

"Why would I want that?"

"You were so mad after the doctor," Willow began.

Buffy interrupted. "I wasn't mad, Will. " She grazed Willow's cheek with her fingers. "Worried, I'm worried about you. I love you, Willow. Either of us leaving is the last thing on my mind, okay?"

"Okay." Willow inhaled deeply and exhaled slowly. "I just…I don't know," she trailed off again.

"Everything will be fine," Buffy said with confidence she didn't feel.

The phone rang, giving them a brief reprieve from their conversation. Buffy answered, then brought the receiver across the kitchen to Willow. Buffy listened to Willow's side of the conversation, and began to frown when Willow's face collapsed into confusion.

"But that's not possible…yes, I know, but…yes…yes…are you sure there isn't some mix-up?...There's not…Wednesday at three, yes, we'll be there…thank you." Willow handed the receiver back to Buffy without looking at her.

"You're scaring me, Willow," Buffy said when she returned to Willow's side.

"We have another appointment Wednesday at 3 o'clock," Willow said evenly. She looked down at the paper so Buffy wouldn't see her confusion and apprehension. "For a sonogram."

"I thought they didn't do them until later."

"They must be wrong."

"Wrong about what?"

Willow lifted her head and faced Buffy. "They said I'm three months, the baby's three months." She was silent for a few moments. "How?"

Buffy slid from the stool and wrapped her arms around Willow. She buried her face in Willow's soft red hair and took comfort in the familiar smell of her shampoo. "It's all right, sweetheart," she said quietly as Willow slumped against her.

After lunch, Buffy headed downtown to get Faith. She had called Giles, who agreed to meet them at the cemetery, and she wanted plenty of daylight on their side. Willow had agreed to talk with Tara, but made Buffy promise not to tell anyone else until they knew more.

Faith looked happy to be relieved of her duties in the gallery, and she kept up a steady patter of conversation during the walk to the cemetery. She knew it would do no good to try to get Buffy to open up about what was bothering her, and ignored the blonde Slayer's unusually intense countenance.

Giles gave them a brief lecture that boiled down to "Don't do anything stupid," before handing each of them a small duffel bag of weapons. They returned sooner than Giles expected.

"There's no one down there now," Faith reported. "Lots of digging, but no vampires or anything else."

"I'll check it out this evening," Giles said. "Just in case they aren't finished."

Late the next afternoon, both Slayers and their witches, as well as Xander, Joyce, and Giles met around the Summers' dining room table. Giles reported first, telling of the Ring of Amara and that if it had been in the catacombs, it was now gone. He had seen or heard nothing so far to indicate who was looking for it or whether it had been found. "I'll keep looking," he promised.

Xander spoke up. "I ran into Harmony last night, and what she was saying makes sense now."

"Harmony Kendall?" Willow asked.

"Yeah. She's a vampire now," Xander began to explain.

"What did she say?" Buffy and Faith asked at the same time.

"I'm getting to that. Aren't you surprised that Harmony's a vampire?"

"Whoever turned her probably bit her to shut her up," Willow said snidely.

"What did she say?" Buffy repeated.

"That Spike was going to kill the Slayers, and then they would own Sunnydale," Xander told them.

"What else?" Buffy asked while Willow asked incredulously "Spike? I thought he had better taste."

"That you wouldn't expect it, even if I told you about this." He looked sheepish. "I thought she was just running her mouth, you know, name dropping like she always did."

"If Spike has the Ring of Amara," Faith asked, "what can he do with it?"

After a long pause, Giles told them, "It makes the wearer invincible."

"Invincible how?" Faith asked. "Does he get more super powers?"

"Invincible as in he can't be killed," Giles said, and all eyes turned to him. "You can't stake him, and holy water, crosses, and sunlight won't affect him."

"Crap," Buffy muttered.

"So how do we stop him?" Faith asked.

"You have to get the ring from him," Giles explained. "Then he will be just another vampire, if there is such a thing." After a brief silence, he waved his hand toward Buffy. "The floor is yours."


	4. Chapter 4

"You know Willow's been sick," Buffy began. She squeezed Willow's thigh gently. "It's, um, she's not really sick."

"I'm pregnant," Willow blurted out.

"Way to go, B!" Faith said with a salacious grin.

"Not now, Faith," Buffy answered tersely.

"C'mon, B, lighten up." Faith leaned back in her chair.

"By my calculations," Willow said, "The baby is growing at the rate of a month a week."

"Damn," Faith said softly as Joyce gasped.

"As far as we can tell, it has something to do with the enjoining spell we did to beat Adam," Buffy added.

"Is it human?" Faith asked.

"Of course, she's human," Willow snapped. She slid the sonogram across the table to Joyce, and Faith leaned in to see it too.

"A girl?" Giles asked.

"Yes," Buffy answered. She looked at him. "She's not something for the Council to play with," she warned.

"You know they keep an eye on you."

Buffy and Faith smirked at each other. "When we let them," Buffy said.

Joyce spoke up at last. "A granddaughter," she said softly, her finger still tracing the baby's form on the paper. She looked up. "We have a lot of work to do to get ready."

Buffy came around the table and hugged her mother. "Thank you," she said, and after a few seconds returned to Willow's side. "We thought you should know," Buffy said, as she found Willow's hand and moved their entwined fingers to the tabletop.

"I can see it now," Faith said. "What I Did On My Summer Vacation by Willow Rosenberg. My girlfriend knocked me up. Oof." She turned to Tara, oblivious by now to Buffy and Willow's dirty looks. "What's that for?"

"No more teasing," Tara said.

"Jeez," Faith whined, and sat back in her seat. "Sorry," she mumbled toward Buffy and Willow.

"Any other business to discuss?" Giles asked, and looked at each person in turn. "Then we're finished." He pushed back his chair and stood. "Congratulations," he said to Buffy and Willow, then turned to Joyce. "Good evening," he said, and left.

Tara and Faith left the table next, and headed into the kitchen to begin dinner. Xander excused himself – "Date with Anya," he grinned – and left Joyce, Buffy, and Willow at the table.

Joyce was still looking at the sonogram, tracing the outline of the baby with her fingertip. After a few moments, she looked up to the girls. "I don't know how this happened, or why, but I'm glad it did."

Buffy said soberly, "We don't have a clue what to do next."

"Willow has to take better care of herself," Joyce began. "Did you get vitamins?" she asked Willow.

"I got a prescription, but we haven't filled it yet," Willow answered.

"You need to get it filled," Joyce scolded gently, and returned her attention to Buffy. "You need to make sure she does what the doctor says."

Willow covered her mouth with her hand so Buffy wouldn't see her smile, but it didn't work.

"I'm serious, girls," Joyce said. "Since she's growing so fast, you need to be extra careful."

"Yes, ma'am," Buffy and Willow answered together.

"If we can move Tara and Faith downstairs, we can use that room for the nursery," Joyce thought aloud.

"Mom, the basement's kinda, you know, unpleasant," Buffy said.

"We'll get if fixed up. Xander can help." Joyce was matter of fact. "What are you going to name her?"

"We haven't decided," Buffy said.

"Have you told your father?"

"No, and I'm not going to," Buffy said firmly. "He doesn't care about us."

"That's not true," Joyce said, but it was obvious she didn't believe it. "Willow, have you told your parents?"

"Which part? That I'm gay or that 'Bunny' is my girlfriend or that I'm a witch or that I'm pregnant because of a spell we did to defeat a demon construct who was raising an army to take over the world."

"Okay," Joyce said slowly.

Faith called from the kitchen, "Dinner in 15."

"Thank you," Joyce answered. She turned back to Buffy and Willow. "Get the vitamins tonight," she instructed, and went to the kitchen.

"Wow, that went way better than I expected," Buffy said.

"Uh huh," Willow agreed.

"I guess we'll take the Jeep after dinner and get those pills so Mom doesn't have a fit. You can drop me and Faith off on the way home."

"All right, as long as Tara comes, too."

"Okay, I'll let them know." Buffy leaned over to kiss Willow briefly before getting to her feet. She left Willow sitting alone in the dining room.

Willow dropped her face into her hands. Things were too weird, and she was exhausted all the time, and none too certain she wanted to have a baby now. 'I'm not finished with school,' she thought frantically. 'How are we going to support ourselves? Maybe I can sell a couple of the databases, or the OS, if I can get it done.'

Buffy's hand on her shoulder interrupted Willow's internal panic babble. "Dinner's ready, sweetheart."

After dinner, they went to the pharmacy as promised. Buffy stayed seated beside Willow on the uncomfortable furniture in the waiting area. Faith and Tara wandered through the store. Buffy and Willow heard them laugh frequently. Willow frowned each time. She was still leery of Faith, and didn't want anything bad to happen to Tara, like Faith had done to Xander.

"What's going on?"

"Nothing," Willow said quickly. "Faith and Tara seem awful friendly."

"Tara's a big girl," Buffy said. "And Faith loves her. Leave them be."

"How can you say that, after all that Faith's done?"

Buffy shrugged. "She changed."

"Uh huh."

"You need to lighten up about her."

"Uh huh," Willow repeated. "Oh, look, our number's up." She was glad to get away from the topic of conversation, and moved quickly to the line.

Buffy followed her, uncertain of what to say.

The car stayed quiet except for Faith's wisecracks, until they reached the cemetery. Buffy leaned over to kiss Willow. "I'll be home soon," she said quietly, and added, "I love you."

Tara moved up into the passenger seat, and locked the doors. "You excited about the baby?" She asked once Willow got the car back in gear.

""Yeah. I'm not wild about the doctors, though."

"I know a midwife," Tara offered.

"She okay with high magic content?"

"Yes." Tara paused. "She's not used to Slayers and stuff, but she's a good midwife."

"Can I meet her without having to get naked?" Willow shuddered as she carefully turned a corner.

"I'll call her when we get home."

"Thanks."

"You're welcome."

"What's with you and Faith?" Willow asked to end the silence.

"We're good," Tara said.

"Define good," Willow asked.

Tara sighed. "What did Faith do to you?"

"Why don't you ask her?" Willow pulled into the Summers driveway and shut off the engine. She got out of the car before Tara could answer, slammed the car door, and went into the house, leaving her purse behind.

Tara picked Willow's bag, too, and made sure the car was locked before following Willow inside. The redhead was nowhere in sight, so Tara put Willow's bag on the couch and headed upstairs to read.

Willow sat on the bed and stared out the window. Without school and patrol, she wasn't sure what to do with her time. Xander always had Anya physically attached or on his mind. Willow sighed, then mentally kicked herself.

She got her laptop and set herself up on the bed. Soon she was engrossed in reading about normal pregnancy. She even found, buried in the Watchers' Council online archives, a few other cases of magical pregnancies, but none that seemed to relate to her situation. Before she knew it, Buffy was home, and the computer was set aside in favor of talk and snuggles.


	5. Chapter 5

Joyce left a list of things for the girls to accomplish that day to begin changing the house to meet their new needs. Willow's instruction was to sit down, keep her feet up, and eat healthy. That left Buffy and Tara to move, haul, sort and clean the basement.

By the end of the day, Tara had a good idea of how she wanted the basement to look, and while dinner was in the oven, she pulled Faith downstairs to show her. Joyce followed them to check on their work. Buffy sat beside Willow on the couch, examining her left hand in detail. It kept Willow from doing anything on the computer, so she closed it and set it aside. "Happy now?" she asked Buffy.

Buffy smiled. "You bet. So tell me what you've learned."

"Getting a birth certificate is going to be difficult."

"Nah," Buffy said. "The Watchers' Council will be falling all over themselves to help a Slayer's daughter. They'll be hoping she'll be a Slayer, too. Or a Slayer witch."

"Can't be a bewitching Slayer," Willow teased. "You've got that covered."

"Yup." Buffy kissed Willow. "What else?"

"Babies are noisy, messy, and exhausting."

"We have help." Buffy raised Willow's hand and kissed it. "What else?"

"Babies are noisy, messy, and exhausting," Willow repeated.

Buffy laughed. "We'll be fine, Willow." She kissed the back of Willow's hand again.

"Okay," Willow said. She laid her head on Buffy's shoulder. "Why am I tired? I didn't do anything all day."

"Parasite," Buffy said, and rubbed Willow's tummy.

The phone rang, and Buffy got up to answer it. She asked the caller to hold, then called to Tara from the top of the basement stairs. Buffy returned to Willow's side on the couch, and Willow laid against her again.

They heard Faith and Joyce climb the stairs, and Tara hang up the phone. Then the oven opened briefly. After that, Tara came in. "That was the m-midwife. She'll be here around 8:30."

"What midwife?" Buffy asked.

"She's someone that Tara knows. You know we're going to have problems if we use a regular doctor," Willow said. "Because she's growing so fast."

"She's coming when?" Buffy asked Tara.

"8:30," Tara repeated. "Buffy, I had Mr. Giles check her out. She's a good midwife and a nice person."

"Okay, but I'm staying with Will."

"Good. Dinner's ready in five minutes."

"Thanks, Tara," Willow said to her retreating back.

"When were you going to tell me about this?" Buffy asked.

"As soon as I knew what was going on. You heard Tara, Giles checked her out. It's safe."

"Better be," Buffy grumbled. She kissed Willow briefly and pushed them apart. She got to her feet and pulled Willow up. "We should wash our hands before dinner."

After eating, they all waited in the living room for the midwife, who turned out to be an ordinary-looking woman in her early 30s. Tara introduced her as Liz, and they all made small talk for a few minutes.

Buffy and Willow went upstairs to their room. Liz followed them and closed the door. Buffy and Willow sat on the bed, and Liz pulled the chair from the vanity. She got a notebook from her bag and sat down across from them.

"Tell me what's going on," Liz began.

"What did Tara tell you?" Buffy asked.

"Nothing, just that one of her friends needed some help."

"Did she tell you anything about us?"

"No."

Buffy sighed, and Willow began their story. "Buffy's a Slayer, and I'm a witch."

Liz turned her attention to Buffy. "You're a Slayer?" she asked.

"Yes," Buffy answered.

"Wow, I thought Slayers were a legend."

"I am," Buffy said with a tight smile.

"Okay," Liz said slowly and returned her attention to Willow. "You were saying?"

"We had to do a spell," Willow started.

"Who did the spell? What was its purpose?"

"Me and Tara and Xander and Giles. It was to give Buffy and Faith the power of the First Slayer. It worked, and we won, and then we came home and took a shower and made love. Next thing I know, I'm pregnant," Willow said in one breath.

"There's no other way you could have gotten pregnant?" Liz asked carefully.

"No," Willow said emphatically.

"Ok, it's not unheard of. When was the spell?"

"Right before finals," Willow said.

"Middle of May," Buffy added.

"And when's your due date?"

Willow paused for a moment. "July 20th."

Liz looked at her carefully. "Based on what?"

"I had a sonogram last week, and the doctor said I was three months then."

"Wow," Liz exhaled lowly.

"She's growing fast, I think about a month each week," Willow added. Buffy rubbed her back in small circles and was careful not to squeeze Willow's hand.

"Wow," Liz repeated. "That's insane. No offense," she added quickly. After a short pause, she asked, "How can I help you?"

"We can't use regular doctors," Buffy said before Willow could answer. "We need someone who can keep an eye on both of them and make sure they're both healthy. And we need someone who can deliver her. I hate the hospital."

"Me, too," Willow chimed in.

Liz took a moment to take some notes. She felt Buffy's glare and looked up. "Just so I can keep track of your baby," she said reassuringly. She asked Willow," Will you please stand up so I can measure you?"

"Why?" Buffy and Willow asked together. Willow's tone was curiosity, but Buffy's was a tiny bit threatening.

"It'll help me keep track of how fast the baby's growing," Liz answered calmly. She picked up her bag and pulled out a cloth tape measure while Willow stood in front of her.

She measured Willow's breasts, then her stomach both horizontally and vertically. When she finished, Willow sat down, and Buffy put her arm around the redhead's waist.

"Are you taking vitamins?" Liz asked.

"Just started."

"Good. Since she's growing so fast, you should probably double up on them. Drink lots of milk and eat healthy. Get some exercise every day. No heavy lifting and no magic. You both need some Lamaze training to help with the delivery," Liz enumerated.

"No magic?" Willow asked, slightly panicked.

"No major spells," Liz said firmly. "If you need a circle to cast, you can't do it."

"Ok, that should be ok, Tara can do them," Willow said.

"You can have sex," Liz continued. She ignored their immediate blushes as she turned to Buffy. "Don't blow air into her vagina, and take it easy with penetration toward the end of the pregnancy. Any questions?"

"Lamaze, that's the breathing stuff, right?" Willow asked.

"Yes. I don't think you have time to find a class, so the three of us will meet twice a week so you can learn what you need to. Anything else?"

Buffy and Willow both shook their heads. Liz rummaged around in her bag again and pulled out a PDA. Willow brightened at the sight of the gizmo. Liz handed Willow a business card, and they talked about their tech toys while Liz filled in her appointments with them. "Tuesdays and Thursdays at 7 okay?"

"Yes," Buffy answered for both of them. "How long will it take?"

"An hour or so," Liz said. "You're both quick studies, and it isn't difficult." She got to her feet. "I'll let myself out," she told them, and closed the door behind herself.

"Oh. My. God," Buffy said.

Willow turned to her. "What?"

"We're going to have a baby."

"Yeah, I've been telling you that."

"But there's Lamaze and twice a week and," Buffy gestured as her words failed.

"Yes, sweetheart," Willow said.

"Wow."

"Wow," Willow agreed.

They sat on the bed, holding hands, for a minute. Buffy let go and stood up. "I have to patrol."

"Be careful."

"I will," Buffy promised. She bent and kissed Willow quickly, and left the room, leaving the door open. Willow heard Buffy get her jacket and go out the door, and Faith follow less than a minute later. Willow went downstairs, where Tara and Joyce waited. She sat in one of the chairs to await the interrogation. It started almost immediately.

"What did she say?" Joyce asked.

"Not much. She asked a lot of questions. Oh, and she'll be here Tuesdays and Thursdays at 7." Willow smiled. "To give us Lamaze lessons. I think Buffy's a little freaked."

"You could say that," Joyce said.

"Faith went after her," Tara added. "Do you like her?"

"Yeah. Thanks, Tara. I wouldn't have had any idea where to start looking for someone like her."

"You're welcome."

"What else did she say?" Joyce asked.

"She wants me to take vitamins, drink milk, eat healthy and get some exercise," Willow ticked off. Joyce smiled, and Willow said, "I know, that's what you said."

"It is, and it's good advice," Joyce answered.

"Anything else you want to know?"

"What about magic?" Tara asked.

"No major spells. I forgot to ask why, though."

"M-magic takes a lot of energy," Tara explained.

"Makes sense," Willow said. "Can we watch TV now, please?"

"Of course, honey," Joyce said, and passed Willow the remote.


	6. Chapter 6

It didn't take long for Faith to catch up to Buffy. "Yo, B, what's your damage? You didn't bring any weapons." She offered Buffy a stake, which the blonde took without looking. "You tore outta the house like you were late to meet your connection. What's going on?"

"We're having a baby," Buffy said in an incredulous tone.

"Yeah, you told us last week."

"It wasn't real last week. This week, I have to start fitting Lamaze into my schedule."

"No big, we'll deal."

"It's huge." Buffy stopped. Faith stopped a step later and turned back to look at her. "We aren't even married. My daughter's going to be a bastard."

Faith burst into laughter. "Get a grip, girl. One, you can't get married. Two, your kid can't be a bastard. See one. If you need some kinda ceremony or something, talk to Tara. She'll hook you up. Now, take a deep breath and pay attention so you don't get hurt. And if you can't pay attention, go home. If I have to carry you home again, Red's gonna tan my hide, and not in a good way, all right?"

Buffy inhaled deeply, then groaned. "We have so much to do."

"We'll get it done. Right now, we have to hunt vampires."

"Or they can hunt you," a voice said from behind them.

"Excuse me, private conversation," Buffy snapped without turning around.

"We can wait." The vampire answered. "But not for long."

Faith flashed four fingers at Buffy, who nodded and whirled around. The fight was on, and lasted less than two minutes. When it finished, Buffy said to Faith, "I don't like this. We should check at home."

"No one can get in there. Blondie and Red go around every week and do some mojo."

"Humor me," Buffy demanded.

"Fine. But I thought Red was supposed to be the moody one."

"Ha ha." Buffy broke into a jog.

In the brief distance between the cemetery and home, they encountered and defeated four more small bands of vampires. After the third one, Faith agreed with Buffy that something weird was going on.

The house looked fine from the outside. Inside, they found Joyce reading while Willow and Tara watched Animal Planet.

"You're back early," Willow commented.

"Anything weird going on?" Buffy asked.

"Other than you, no." Willow answered.

Tara looked at Faith. "Why?" Faith shrugged in reply.

"No strange noises or anything?" Buffy persisted.

"No, honey, everything's fine," Joyce said.

"We're going to look around anyway," Buffy said, and headed for the back door. She called Faith to the kitchen immediately. Buffy flipped on the exterior light when Faith reached the door. Half a dozen vampires were seated comfortably on the grass, watching them. One even waved, which made Faith see red. Buffy held her back and turned out the lights. She made sure the door was double locked, and both Slayers returned to the living room.

"Tara, did you do the protection spell on the house this week?" Buffy asked.

"Yes. Um, yesterday. Why?"

"Just checking." Buffy answered as she double-locked the front door. "Any windows open upstairs?"

"I don't know," Willow and Tara answered together.

"I'll check," Faith volunteered.

"Buffy, what's going on?" Willow asked.

"I don't know yet. Call Giles and Xander. Tell them to stay inside and lock all the doors and windows," Buffy called as she moved through the first floor making sure all windows were closed and locked and their curtains drawn.

They all turned toward the staircase when the attic stairs came down, but only Buffy yelled. "Faith?"

"Yo," came the muffled response, and within a minute, the attic stairs were closed. Faith came bounding down the stairs. "All clear upstairs," she reported.

"K," Buffy answered. "Let's gear up."

"Us, too?" Willow asked after covering the mouthpiece."

"Definitely not you," Buffy answered. "Did you get Giles?"

"No. And Xander's not answering, either." Willow hung up the phone. "And why not me?"

"Baby," Buffy answered tersely, and handed Faith a crossbow from the weapons chest.

"So I'm supposed to sit here and do nothing?" Willow demanded.

"Pretty much," Faith answered.

"I'm not talking to you," Willow snapped.

Buffy stood up and turned around to make eye contact with Willow. "Yes, you're supposed to stay indoors and away from the windows." She expected an argument, and was surprised that she didn't get one.

"Fine," Willow said coolly after a few seconds. As an afterthought, she added, "You didn't check the basement."

"On it," Faith said immediately.

"I-is there anything I can do t-to h-h-help?" Tara asked.

"Nope," Buffy answered.

"Buffy, will you at least tell us what all this is about?" Joyce asked.

"I'd love to, Mom, but I don't know. When I find out, I'll let you know," Buffy said tersely. She turned to Willow again. "Keep trying Giles and Xander, please."

Willow nodded in acknowledgment. Buffy kneeled and resumed rooting through the weapons chest.

Faith returned moments later. "I don't know about the basement, B."

"We d-d-didn't think to do those windows," Tara volunteered.

"Can you do them now?" Faith asked. "I'll come with you."

Tara got up from her seat. "I n-need a few things from upstairs."

While she was gone, Willow alternated between glaring at the Slayers and dialing the phone. Tara returned almost immediately, and she and Faith went to the basement.

"Cut it out, Will," Buffy demanded once they were gone.

"Cut what out?" Willow asked sweetly.

Buffy went to Willow. She took the phone from her and hung it up. "You know what," she said in a low tone. "Faith and I fought four small bands of vampires between Mount Hope and here. There's another group in the back yard. We don't know why, and I don't want anything to happen to you."

"You don't have to be all Slayerish about it," Willow complained softly.

"I do," Buffy said gently. She kissed Willow quickly. "Don't let anything happen to Mom, ok?"

"Ok."

Buffy stalked to the basement door and called down the stairs, "How's it going?"

"Almost done," Faith answered, and after a minute and a half, they came upstairs.

Tara headed out of the kitchen, and Buffy caught Faith's arm. "Well?" she demanded.

"All six windows and the storm door are blessed and warded," Faith replied. "What's the game plan?"

"As far as I can tell, there's only that group in the back yard. If they can't get in the house, we don't have to worry about Mom and them."

"If the vampires are working alone," Faith answered. "They could be waiting for us to leave so they can send some other demon in here."

"Crap."

"Let's go upstairs and use the crossbows on them and see what happens," Faith suggested.

"You go," Buffy instructed. "I'll stay down here in case they're a decoy."

Faith nodded and Buffy went to the kitchen door to watch what would happen.

Tara was sitting on the bed when Faith entered their room. She winked at Tara before she turned out the light. "Target practice," she said softly, and opened one of the windows a few inches. She knelt, drew a deep breath, and started picking off the vampires in the back yard.

Less than five minutes after the last one turned to dust, another group appeared. Before she started on them, Faith told Tara to ask Buffy if she had any ideas, and to bring more bolts when she returned.

Tara returned with Buffy's answer, two handsful of bolts and a bottle of holy water. "Buffy said j-just keep at it." Tara calmly uncorked the holy water and began dipping the bolts into it.

Over the next several hours, Faith picked off nearly six dozen vampires. Every time one pack was annihilated, another came to take its place. Downstairs, Willow continued to dial both Xander and Giles until she received answers from both and relayed Buffy's message. That task completed, she sat on the sofa and pouted.

Joyce went to bed at 11, as she customarily did. Willow went into the kitchen. She stayed away from both the window over the sink and Buffy at the back door. "What's going on? Tara keeps coming down for ammunition."

"Faith's got great aim," Buffy answered quietly. "They just keep coming. I don't have a clue where they're from or why they're out there. That's a lot of soldiers to sacrifice to keep us here," Buffy thought out loud.

"How many?" Willow asked.

"Sixty so far, I think."

"I didn't think there were that many active vampires in Sunnydale," Willow commented.

"We usually have about 30. When the Hellmouth is active or someone's having a turf war, we get more. But we know when that's happening. There're signs and stuff. This is just odd," Buffy said.

"Can I go to bed, or do you want me to stay here?"

Buffy turned away from the door. "I'd like it if you stayed."

"All right," Willow answered, and slipped into a chair.

They didn't talk. Willow watched Buffy, and Buffy watched outside. After two hours, Buffy said, "What the heck?" and Willow got up and looked over her shoulder.

All of the used crossbow bolts were rising from the ground. Willow smiled, and said to Buffy, "It's probably Tara, but I'll check."

"Thanks," Buffy said, and continued to watch the yard.

Willow didn't knock before entering Tara and Faith's room. If Tara was causing the bolts to return, she didn't need her concentration broken. She was certain it was Tara's doing when she saw the bolts coming through the open window and piling themselves neatly on the floor.

Willow waited until the bolts stopped coming to clear her throat to announce herself. Faith removed her hands from Tara's shoulders and they both stepped back from the window. "Good job," Willow said. "How'd you?" she started.

"Faith helped," Tara volunteered.

"Nope, it was all Blondie," Faith contradicted. She picked up the open bottle of holy water from the dresser and poured it over the stack of bolts. Then she took up her place at the window again.

"You all right?" Willow asked Tara.

"Yeah," Tara smiled. "It's not a big deal."

"Yeah, it is," Faith said. "I was out of ammo, and they keep coming. Tell B they're coming over the fences."

"Ok," Willow said. "You need anything else?"

"Nope, we're five by five," Faith said, and Tara nodded in agreement.

Willow nodded and returned to the kitchen. "Faith said to tell you they're coming over the fences."

"Somebody has to be orchestrating this," Buffy said. "I wonder where from?"

"The roof would be my guess," Willow said. "That's about the only place you can see all the yards from."

"Hmmm. Wonder if I can sneak out?" Buffy thought aloud.

"Why?" Willow asked. "This can't keep up. I mean, Faith's all ready killed how many? Whoever's doing this is probably waiting for one or both of you to do just that. If you stay in, all that happens is that all their work to create this many vampires is wasted."

"Yeah, but what else is going on while we're holed up at home?" Buffy asked.

"Guess you'll find out in the morning," Willow said firmly, and Buffy let the matter rest.


	7. Chapter 7

At 6 a.m., Willow turned on the local news. They reported nothing out of the ordinary, even by Sunnydale standards. When the sun was fully up, Faith and Tara went into the yard to gather the crossbow bolts. When they had them neatly piled on the back step, they took a walk around the house.

They didn't expect to see anything, but Faith wasn't willing to take any chances, and carefully inspected from the foundation up. Apart from footprints, she saw nothing unusual. Before they went inside, Faith stood in the back yard and looked around. The piles of dust would dissipate in the breeze as the day went on, but she was still uncomfortable.

"What?" Tara asked softly.

"That protection thing you do in the house, can you do it to cover the whole yard? Or at least the exterior of the house?" Faith asked.

"I don't know, but I'll see what I can find out," Tara answered.

"I'd stay and help, but I need to keep an eye on Joyce."

"I know."

"Don't tell them, ok?"

"Why?"

"Not until we know for sure if you can do it," Faith explained.

"All right," Tara agreed.

Faith nodded, and gestured toward the door. "I need coffee," she yawned as she followed Tara into the kitchen.

Buffy and Willow were nowhere in sight. Joyce drank coffee and looked at the paper while Tara and Faith ate cereal, and Joyce and Faith left for the gallery as they did every morning.

Tara went upstairs. As she passed Buffy and Willow's door, she heard nothing, and hoped that they were sleeping. In the room she and Faith shared for another week or two, she started going through her books. Although Willow always started her research online, Tara loved the feel of her grimoires, and learned something each time she opened one.

She dozed off with a book open on her lap. Her dreams were disjointed, but not unpleasant. When she woke, Tara started her research again. The next page she turned seemed to meet Faith's request. Tara read and re-read the spell, and was enchanted by its simplicity. She even had, in the picnic basket where she stored her magic supplies, all but one of the herbs and oils needed. The additional power she would need, Faith would be able to supply, as she had the night before.

Tara rose from bed and stretched. It was nearly noon, so she went downstairs to the hall phone and called the gallery. Faith answered, and agreed to wait for Tara to arrive so they could have lunch together.

Tara left a note on the refrigerator and walked downtown. It was another lovely day. The sky was clear, and it was warm, but a steady breeze kept her comfortable.

Faith went with her to the magic shop before they went to eat. Over lunch, Tara filled her in about the spell, and Faith agreed that they should do it as soon as possible. Tara walked back to the gallery with Faith before heading home.

Buffy and Willow were at the dining room table when Tara returned. Willow was immersed in the laptop while Buffy flipped through books. "Find anything?" Tara asked.

"Nope," Buffy sighed. Willow didn't acknowledge the question.

Tara took a seat near Buffy. "Faith had a really good idea," she said softly.

"Yeah?" Buffy asked hopefully. She closed the book and pushed it away.

"When she gets home, we're going to ward the property like the house is warded."

Willow's head popped up over the computer screen. "You can do that?" she asked.

"Yes."

"How?" Buffy and Willow asked together, and Tara spent the next few minutes outlining her plan. When she finished, Willow grinned at her. "Elegant," she said softly, then added, "Can I help?"

"No," Buffy said before Tara could answer.

"Faith's going to help," Tara explained, and Willow swallowed the unkind thought she had and returned to her research.

"You're sure about this?" Buffy asked.

Tara nodded. "It isn't too complicated, and if it works, we can do it at Mr. Giles' and Xander's."

"Cool. Now we just have to figure out why vampires are coming out of the woodwork."

"Does Mr. Giles have any ideas?"

"No." Buffy sighed. "Other than research." Buffy sighed again and pulled another book close.

"I'll help later," Tara promised. She got to her feet and picked up her bag.

"Thanks," Buffy said. She opened the book and made a face.

Tara did her best not to giggle until she was upstairs. She filled the time until Faith and Joyce came home with reviewing and mentally rehearsing the spell.

The sun was still bright when Faith and Joyce returned from work. While Joyce talked to Buffy and Willow, Faith went upstairs to find Tara. They shared a brief kiss, and Faith asked, "Ready?"

Tara bit her lip, but nodded her head. She handed Faith a few 3"x5" cards, and picked up the small basket holding the things she needed for the spell. They went downstairs and into the back yard.

Most of the piles of ash were gone, but the lawn was covered with the gray film of remains. Tara explained to Faith what she was going to do, and how Faith would help. They went over everything twice more before beginning.

Half an hour later, they were finished. Tara had started in one corner and worked counterclockwise around the property, remembering to include above and below in the ritual blessing. All of the words and actions combined to simultaneously sanctify the property and put out a "no trespassing" vibe to anyone who meant to harm them.

Afterward, Faith went upstairs to shower. Tara went up after the water stopped and found Faith drying her hair. She was in her sleepwear on the side of the bed, and smiled at Tara when she saw her. "I'm gonna catch some zzzs," Faith explained.

"Good idea. You must be exhausted."

Faith shrugged. She was bone tired, up for 36 hours without a break, and spending the last one letting Tara tap into her power, but she figured it came with the territory.

"I'll let you sleep," Tara said, and turned to leave.

"Don't go," Faith said.

Tara couldn't tell whether it was a command or a request, but either was fine with her. Faith tossed the towel on the floor and gestured for Tara to join her. Tara stopped en route to pick up the towel and hang it over the closet door.

Faith laid down and scooted over to make room for Tara. "You should take me to lunch every day," she said as they settled themselves with Faith's head on Tara's shoulder.

"Oh?"

"It was nice." Faith yawned and snuggled down against Tara's side.

"Good."

"Don't let me sleep too long," Faith instructed, and closed her eyes. Her even breathing told Tara that she had fallen asleep quickly. It wasn't long before Tara, too, fell asleep.

There was no patrol that night. Faith and Tara slept while Willow continued to research and Buffy prowled from window to window looking for signs of a repeat of the previous night. Shortly after 10 p.m., Willow went up to bed. Buffy followed her soon after, but twitched awake at every sound.

In the morning, Tara and Faith again walked around the house. There was no evidence that anyone had been in the yard overnight, and Faith crowed, "Good job, Blondie."

Tara, a little embarrassed, smiled and thanked Faith. "We can do Mr. Giles' and Xander's this afternoon," she said.

"All right," Faith agreed. "Let's get breakfast."

Buffy and Tara spent the day finishing their work in the basement while Willow continued to research. By the time Joyce and Faith returned home, the basement was ready for Xander to begin work.

Faith waited impatiently for Tara to gather what she needed for the spell. She had been cooped up inside all day as the gallery had been busy, and was looking forward to being outside, even if only to walk a few blocks. Plus, that would give her time alone with Tara, who didn't know yet that they were going to have dinner out. Faith had cleared it with Joyce, who had seemed distracted all day. When Faith saw her taking pills twice, she realized that Joyce had another headache. She had gone upstairs to lay down as soon as they were home.

While Faith waited for Tara, she let Buffy and Willow know that Joyce wasn't feeling well and that they were on their own for dinner.

"Liz will be here later," Buffy reminded Faith. "We'll patrol after, all right?"

"Sure." Faith agreed absently, and turned to watch Tara descend the stairs. While upstairs, she had quickly washed up and changed her grimy clothes for a skirt and brightly colored top. "Later," she said to Buffy and Willow, and moved quickly to open the door for Tara.

Buffy got to her feet. "I'm going to check on Mom," she told Willow.

"Okay," Willow answered without looking up from the monitor.

Buffy tapped on her mother's door before slipping inside. "Mom? Anything I can do?" She crossed the room quickly and sat beside her mother.

"I'm all right, honey."

"You're having a lot of headaches."

"It's nothing," Joyce reassured her.

"Will you please go to the doctor and get checked?"

"I don't think that's necessary," Joyce protested.

"Please?" Buffy asked again. "For your granddaughter," she added in hope that a little guilt would help argument.

Joyce sighed before she acquiesced. "All right."

"Thank you." Buffy paused. "Are you sure there isn't anything I can do?"

"I'm sure, honey. Go have dinner before the midwife comes."

"All right." Buffy kissed her mother's cheek before standing up. "Feel better."

Joyce nodded as she closed her eyes, and Buffy quietly slipped out of the room.

Downstairs, Buffy found that Willow had set the computer aside to watch the news. She called for a pizza before rejoining Willow on the couch. "How's your mom?" Willow asked.

"All right, I guess," Buffy answered. She laid her head on Willow's shoulder, and Willow put her hand on Buffy's thigh. They stayed like that until dinner arrived.

They were still eating when Liz arrived, and pushed the food aside. Again, Liz measured Willow. Then they started talking. After an hour, Liz wrapped up. As she prepared to go, Buffy looked a little confused. "I thought there was going to be breathing and stuff."

"Next time," Liz promised. "You'll need pillows, and we'll need space to be on the floor, all right?"

"All right," Buffy agreed. She followed Liz to the door and stood there to make sure she got into her car safely. As Liz pulled away, Faith and Tara approached, and Buffy waited for them. "All finished?" she asked.

"With?" Faith asked.

"The spells."

"Oh, yeah. We even did the gallery."

"Thanks," Buffy smiled, and led them into the house. Willow was nowhere in sight, and Buffy called her name.

"Kitchen," was the reply, and Buffy went there to find Willow putting the rest of the pizza on a pan.

"What're you doing?"

"I'm still hungry, and the microwave always makes the edges too hot and leaves the middle cold," Willow explained while she slid the tray into the oven. She set the timer for 20 minutes before turning to face Buffy. "All right?"

"All right," Buffy agreed.

Willow took two steps and covered the space between them. She brushed her lips across Buffy's and said, "Glad you approve."

Buffy smiled and pulled Willow close. She kissed her purposefully, forgetting for a few seconds that anything other than their connection existed.

"All right, you two, break it up," Faith said playfully.

Buffy and Willow traded a few more kisses before separating. "You have lousy timing," Buffy said.

Faith ignored her comment. "Ready to patrol?"

"No." Buffy glanced over Willow's shoulder at the stove. "Probably be half an hour or so."

"Cool." Faith went behind Buffy and pulled two bottles of water from the refrigerator. She left them without saying anything else.


	8. Chapter 8

As Buffy and Faith were preparing to leave, Xander and Anya showed up. Xander was carrying a plastic grocery bag, and after the Slayers left, he emptied it onto the coffee table, spilling half a dozen videocassettes, a notebook, tape measure, and square carpenter's pencil.

While Tara took Xander and Anya to the basement to show them what needed to be done, Willow went to check on Joyce. Like Buffy had, she tapped on the door before letting herself in. "Joyce?" she asked quietly.

"Hmmm?"

"You feel any better?"

"A little," Joyce lied.

"Can I get you anything?" Willow asked.

"Two more aspirin and a drink would be nice."

Willow, relieved to have something useful to do, said, "Be right back."

A few minutes later, she returned with a glass of ginger ale, a sleeve of saltine crackers, and the aspirin to find Joyce sitting on the side of the bed. Willow put the offerings on the nightstand and sat beside Joyce. "Buffy's really worried about you," she said softly.

"I know. I'll call the doctor tomorrow." Joyce fumbled with the aspirin bottle for a few moments before handing it to Willow, who opened it easily. She tapped two pills into Joyce's waiting palm. Joyce swallowed them quickly.

"Tara warded the gallery," Willow told her while she closed the bottle.

"I'll have to remember to thank her."

"Xander's downstairs measuring stuff."

"Good." Joyce rubbed her temples, and Willow quickly stood up.

"I'll let you rest."

"Thank you, dear."

"Let me know if you need anything else."

"I will." Joyce flipped her pillow to put the cool side up, and laid back while Willow let herself out.

Tara, Xander and Anya were on the couch talking when Willow returned to the living room. As soon as Xander saw her, he hit play on the remote control. The movie started, and Willow was relieved that there would be no conversation.

After one movie, Xander and Anya left. They left the movies there, but neither witch made any effort to watch another. After a few minutes of silence, Willow pushed up off the couch. "Good night, Tara."

"Night, Willow."

A few minutes later, Tara went upstairs. She hesitated at Joyce's door, then opened it just enough to peek in. Joyce stirred, and Tara slipped inside. "You feeling any better?" Tara asked quietly.

"No," Joyce answered.

"Will you let me try something?"

"If you think it will help."

Tara nodded and came to sit beside Joyce. "Close your eyes."

When Joyce did, Tara laid one hand across them. She took a deep breath, and started to hum softly. After half an hour, she was sure Joyce was asleep, and removed her hand. Tara smoothed the covers over Joyce and let herself out. She went to her room, changed into pajamas and got into bed.

Just before sunrise, Buffy and Faith returned home. They tried to be quiet, but the witches woke anyway, and came downstairs together to see what all the noise was about.

Willow smelled them before she was halfway through the dining room, and when Buffy came to hug her, she held the Slayer back with one hand. "Did you roll around in the sewer?"

"Maybe a little," Buffy admitted.

"Spill. Now." Willow demanded.

"Big vamp nest. All gone now," Buffy answered concisely.

Tara looked at Faith for confirmation. "It was awesome," Faith said with a huge grin, and she and Buffy high fived each other.

"How awesome?" Willow asked, still looking at Buffy.

"Dunno," Faith shrugged. "I wasn't countin'."

"Fifty or so," Buffy said, and Willow glared.

"What?" Buffy asked.

"You're supposed to be careful."

"We were careful," Buffy protested.

Faith caught Tara's eye and moved her head toward the dining room. They slipped out unnoticed.

"I didn't get hurt. Not even a scratch," Buffy continued.

Willow didn't say anything.

"What's going on?" Buffy asked.

"You're supposed to be careful," Willow repeated.

"I can't be any more careful, Willow. I'm the Slayer. It's my job. If I don't do my job, people die."

"Fine. Go take a shower."

"Tell me what's wrong," Buffy said.

"Nothing. Hormones." Willow softened her tone. "Go get your shower. I'll scramble some eggs."

"Will," Buffy began.

"Go," Willow said firmly, and dove into the refrigerator.

Buffy sighed and headed upstairs. She stripped and paced their room while she waited for Faith to finish showering, and as soon as she could, washed, dressed, and returned downstairs.

Tara had taken over making breakfast, and Willow sat on a stool and stayed out of the way. Buffy stood beside Willow and put an arm around her waist. She was pleased when Willow laid her head on her shoulder.

Between them, Buffy and Faith scarfed down a dozen eggs, a pound of bacon, half a loaf of bread, a pot of coffee, a gallon of milk and a half gallon of orange juice. Tara fixed a smaller breakfast for she and Willow, and an omelet for Joyce, which she left in the oven to stay warm. Buffy and Willow cleaned up while Tara and Faith went outside.

Tara sat in a sunny patch in the back yard, and Faith sprawled beside her. Tara smiled at Faith and asked, "Want to help?"

"Help what?"

"Grounding. Meditation."

"This gonna be weird like last time?" Faith asked.

"It shouldn't be."

"Okay, but if it gets weird, I'm outta here."

"Deal." Tara held a hand out to Faith, who rolled onto her knees and settled in front of Tara. They held one hand, while the other pressed, palm down, against the grass.

This time, Faith saw nothing. She felt calm, and happy, and enjoyed the warm morning sun. She was disoriented for a moment when Tara leaned forward and kissed her, but recovered quickly.

Inside, Buffy trapped Willow against the sink. She pulled Willow's hair aside to kiss her neck.

"Stop it," Willow said irritably.

"Why?" Buffy asked, and got elbowed in the stomach. "What's wrong?" she asked harshly.

Willow turned off the water, but didn't move or answer.

"Will?"

"I'm having a bad day."

"I'll say," Buffy muttered. She raised her voice. "If I did something wrong, you need to tell me what it is so I don't do it again."

"You didn't do anything."

"Then what's with the attitude?" Buffy asked Willow's back.

Willow sighed and finally turned to face Buffy. "You stayed out all night."

"It's my job," Buffy repeated.

"Fine. It's your job." Willow turned back to the dishes.

Buffy sighed. She got a clean towel from the drawer beside the refrigerator and began to dry and put the dishes away. When she finished washing, Willow dried her hands and left without saying anything to Buffy. Buffy finished the dishes and went looking for Willow.

She found her lying on their bed, facing the windows. Buffy closed their door, then slid in behind her and waited to see what Willow would say.

"I couldn't get comfortable last night," she said. "I was worrying about you."

"I'm sorry," Buffy said softly.

"I should know better by now, but everything's different." Willow covered Buffy's hand with her own. "And all I could think was, I can't do this alone. Without you. I haven't worried about you patrolling this much since high school. It kept getting later and all I could think was that we would have to try to find your body and…" Willow trailed off.

Buffy felt her shake, and gently turned Willow to face her. She wiped tears from Willow's cheek. "I'm here, sweetheart. Nothing bad happened. I will always come home to you." She kissed Willow gently, forehead, nose, cheeks, chin, and finally her lips. "I love you, Willow."

Willow smiled and finally relaxed. "I love you, too."

"You wanna take a nap?"

"Yeah."

"I'll be right here the whole time."

"Okay." Willow yawned.

Buffy turned onto her back, and Willow snuggled into her side.


	9. Chapter 9

Buffy woke a little before noon. The house was empty, and Willow was splayed across her. Buffy stretched as much as she was able without disturbing Willow. She pulled the redhead closer, and let her hands move gently against Willow's back and side. One stayed in Willow's hair, moving easily through the soft strands.

Buffy smiled as Willow began to wake up. She waited patiently for Willow's eyes to open.

"What time's it?" Willow asked sleepily.

"Noonish."

"We should get up."

"Don't wanna," Buffy pouted.

"Got something on your mind?"

"Just you." Buffy waited for Willow to look at her. When she did, Buffy kissed her gently.

"Mmmm, nice," Willow murmured.

"Nobody's home," Buffy said.

"Good." Willow shifted to lie atop Buffy.

Buffy moved to accommodate her. "Will?"

"Hmm?" Willow's finger drifted around the collar of Buffy's shirt.

"I love you."

"I love you, too." Willow sat up, astride her girlfriend. "I'm sorry I was a jerk this morning."

"It's all right."

"I was serious, though, Buffy. You have to be careful."

"I am careful." Buffy sat up and wrapped her arms around Willow. "And I have to tell you something."

Willow pulled back. She rested her hands on Buffy's shoulders. "What?"

"I should have told you before, but I didn't want you to wig."

"Wigging now," Willow said pointedly.

"Don't." Buffy cupped Willow's face in her hands and kissed her gently. "It's a good thing."

"So spill, Slayer girl."

"I had a dream, a Slayer dream." Buffy smiled at the memory of it. "About us. The night before we, uh, became us."

"And?" Willow prompted.

"I saw us. All three of us. You and me and her. And then I had another one, um, later. It wasn't so nice, except that we were there again, our family, our daughter."

"Why didn't you tell me?" Willow asked softly. She rested her forehead against Buffy's.

"I just," Buffy stopped for a moment. "I don't know."

"Buff," Willow chided.

"I thought it meant we had time. A lot of time."

"And now you think we don't," Willow said flatly. She withdrew, and Buffy's hands fell to her shoulders.

"No. Yes. No. That's not what I meant."

Willow looked toward the window. It was another lovely day, and completely at odds with the uneasiness brought on by their conversation. When Buffy didn't say anything more, Willow moved to get out of bed.

"Will, I'm sorry." Buffy scrambled to follow the redhead.

Willow stopped in the doorway and turned back to face Buffy, who skidded to a stop in front of her. "When you decide what's important, let me know."

"Willow," Buffy pleaded, and reached for her.

Willow stepped back, out of Buffy's reach, before turning toward the stairs. Buffy listened to Willow's bare feet on the steps, and cursed her inability to communicate to Willow the joy she felt at both her dream and its reality. She heard the back door open, and decided to leave Willow alone for the time being. Instead of moping, Buffy decided to do something constructive, and started with straightening their room. She moved to the bathroom, cleaned it, and gathered all the laundry she could find. She glanced out the back door on her way to the basement, and saw Willow sitting crosslegged on the ground in the shade.

After she started the laundry, Buffy returned to the kitchen. She found lemonade in the refrigerator and poured two glasses. Buffy carried them outside. She sat on her knees across from Willow and silently offered one of the glasses. Willow took it and set it aside.

"I'm so bad at saying the important things," Buffy began. "I want a lifetime with you, Willow. Not a Slayer's lifetime, a regular one, where we get gray hair and have grandchildren to spoil. I will do everything in my power to make that happen, but I can't stop being the Slayer anymore than I can stop loving you." She looked at Willow, but couldn't read her face. "Please, say something," Buffy implored.

"She moved."

Buffy's face scrunched up in confusion. "What?"

"The baby. I felt her move."

"Really? Can I feel?"

"On one condition."

Buffy waited for Willow to speak her piece. She knew she would agree to virtually anything Willow asked.

"You have to stop keeping things from me. Good things, bad things, whatever. Stop trying to protect me from things we can't control. It's not fair to me, to us, all of us." Willow swirled her hand between them. "You just have to let some things play out without you. The whole world isn't your responsibility. We are. We have to be, or we need to stop now."

"Okay." Buffy tentatively moved her hand toward Willow.

Willow took it and pulled it close. She kissed Buffy's palm before pressing it against her abdomen. They were still sitting like that when Tara and Faith returned with the Jeep loaded with things from Xander's list. The sun, although still bright, had shifted several degrees.

After she deposited the first load of lumber in the basement, Faith called out the back door, "Yo, a little help would be nice."

Her voice startled both women, and Buffy waved noncommittally toward the house with her free hand, but maintained eye contact with Willow while keeping the other hand on the redhead's belly.

After another trip, it was obvious to Faith that she and Tara would be unloading the vehicle alone. Buffy and Willow hadn't moved, and were floating just above the ground. When the Jeep was empty, Faith started for the back yard, but Tara stopped her.

Nearly half an hour later, Buffy and Willow passed through the kitchen without saying anything to the other couple. They went upstairs, and a few minutes later came back down and went out the front door. They both wanted more quiet time alone, and knew it wouldn't be available at the house any time soon. Holding hands, they headed for the park. They sat under an old oak tree, rumored to be the oldest in Sunnydale, and Willow leaned back against Buffy, who held her loosely against her front while resting against the tree trunk. Buffy's hands stayed on Willow's stomach, and in their stillness, she felt their daughter move. They didn't talk, but occasionally exchanged kisses.

When the sun hit the tree line, Buffy said, "We need to go home now."

"I know," Willow sighed, and got to her feet.

Buffy rose behind her, and slipped her arm around Willow's waist, and they walked home.

The house was full of noise when they arrived, and they followed it to the basement. Xander and Faith were framing walls. Tara and Anya watched, unless one or the other was asked for something. Buffy and Willow took one look at the chaos and went back upstairs before they got drafted. They ran into Joyce in the kitchen.

"Hi, Mom."

"Hi, honey, Willow."

"How was your day?"

"Good. I sold two paintings."

"Fantastic." Buffy paused. "Did you call the doctor?"

Joyce sighed. "Yes, I called the doctor."

"And," Willow prompted.

"I see her Monday, all right?"

"Peachy," Buffy and Willow said together.

Joyce laughed. "That's enough of that. No fair making fun of the parent."

Buffy ignored her. "What's for dinner?"

"Pizza," Faith called up from the basement. "Should be here any time. Xander's treat," she added, and they immediately heard Anya squawking about the cost. To the surprise of everyone upstairs, she quickly quieted.

Buffy and Willow went to the living room to wait for dinner to arrive while Joyce went downstairs to check the progress in the basement.

The dinner break was brief. Afterward, Faith and Xander returned to the basement while Tara and Anya went upstairs to begin boxing up things. Buffy, Willow and Joyce stayed in the living room. Willow and Joyce read while Buffy laid on the couch with her head on Willow's thigh. At 10 pm, the downstairs crew called it quits. They came upstairs, and Tara and Anya came down. Xander suggested patrolling followed by the Bronze. Buffy and Willow, knowing they were outvoted even if they objected, agreed.

Patrol was odd, and everyone was uneasy as they swept the cemeteries. They saw shadows in their peripheral vision, and several times had the feeling they were being watched. The Slayers split off from the main group a number of times to try unsuccessfully to run down the bogeys. They found no vampires apart from half a dozen newly risen, and saw no other demons of any kind, and were gathered around two tables in the Bronze by 12:30 a.m.

After half an hour, Willow said quietly into Buffy's ear, "I've had enough noise for one night."

"Ready to go?"

"Yeah."

"All right." Buffy hopped down from the tall chair and offered her arm to Willow. She smiled at their friends, waved, and pointed toward the door. Faith nodded in acknowledgment, and they left.

The same uncomfortable feeling they had during patrol followed them on their walk home, and they were both relieved to see the house come into view. As they got closer, the feeling eased.

While Buffy unlocked the door, she commented, "That's some spell Tara used."

"You felt it, huh?"

"Yeah. It makes a difference." Buffy carefully locked the door behind them. "Wanna see what they got done before we go upstairs?"

"Not really. I kinda had something else in mind."

"Oh?"

Willow winked at Buffy and started climbing the stairs. Buffy, ever curious, followed with her eyes glued to her girlfriend's rear. Willow invoked the silence spell as soon as Buffy closed the bedroom door. She took Buffy's hand and pulled her to the bed.


	10. Chapter 10

Willow didn't give Buffy a moment to think or react. She pulled Buffy's face toward her own and began a scorching kiss. Once she was certain she had Buffy's complete attention, Willow's hands got busy with buttons and zippers and everything that separated them.

Willow pulled out of the kiss for a moment to pull Buffy's shirt over her head. She quickly unhooked Buffy's bra and pushed her girlfriend onto the mattress. Buffy sat up and watched Willow strip. When Buffy tried to get up to help, Willow playfully told her, "Unh unh," and Buffy sat back down.

Willow stood naked just out of Buffy's reach, and Buffy took in the subtle changes to Willow's body before her eyes rose to meet Willow's.

"You like?" Willow asked.

"I adore," Buffy answered.

Willow, satisfied with her reply, moved toward the bed, and Buffy opened her legs so Willow could stand between them. The redhead's breasts were at face level, and Buffy leaned forward to kiss each in turn. She stayed there, lips and tongue and teeth inflaming Willow's desire, and Buffy knew instinctively when to wrap her arms around the redhead for support.

Buffy gradually widened her mouth's travels, and in the search, pulled Willow onto the bed. When Buffy tried to cover the redhead with her body, Willow flipped them so that she sat astride the blonde.

Willow took a turn at Buffy's breasts, and got just as lost in her responses as Buffy had been in her own. Buffy, happy to let Willow lead, ran her hands restlessly through Willow's hair and up and down her shoulders. Willow took a long time kissing and caressing Buffy's torso before moving up to her neck. Buffy whimpered at the pull of Willow's teeth on her skin, and was rewarded by Willow's leisurely lowering onto the length of her body.

Buffy's hands instinctively pulled Willow tighter against her. She loved the subtle electricity that flowed between them at each juncture, and the way it increased as they became more aroused. Her body rippled against Willow's, responding to every touch of lips, tongue, fingers, and breath.

"Tell me what you want," Willow demanded.

Buffy shuddered at both the words and Willow's hot breath across her ear. She groaned and undulated against Willow again.

Willow sat up. She was splayed against Buffy's hip, and she rocked a few times, smearing heat on Buffy's skin. When Buffy looked at her, Willow began talking. "In high school, in gym class, I wanted you so bad." She ran her hands up Buffy's stomach to cup her breasts. "The shower was the worst. You were so sexy in the shower." Willow bent down and kissed Buffy fiercely. She made sure to grind her breasts against Buffy's, and plundered her lover's mouth until Buffy made some sound that vibrated against her tongue. The she sat up again. Without waiting for Buffy's eyes to open, she continued. "I wanted you so bad. I had this fantasy that we would be alone in there and I would push you against the tile and hump you like a bitch in heat."

Buffy's eyes opened wide at Willow's statement. It took her breath for half a moment while her nipples hardened more and liquid trickled out between her legs. She could see Willow doing just that and moaned "oh god."

"Goddess," Willow corrected, and thrust her tongue in Buffy's ear. "Tell me everything you want," she growled. "Tell me how to make you scream." She sat up again and waited for Buffy to look at her.

Buffy kept her eyes closed and mumbled something.

"Sweetheart," Willow prompted, "I can't hear you." She shifted, smearing more of her juices across Buffy's hip.

Buffy's eyes opened and locked on Willow's. "Fuck me," she gasped.

"How?" Willow asked urgently.

Buffy looked away again. "Your hand," she exhaled.

Willow kept her tone gentle but firm. "Look at me, Buffy." She waited until Buffy did. "Don't be ashamed of what you need." Willow stroked Buffy's cheek tenderly, then leaned down. "I'll give you everything you ask for."

"I want," Buffy said raggedly, "you inside me." She arched against Willow and groaned as the redhead twitched against her.

"You sure that's what you want?"

"Please. Please Will."

Willow abruptly sat up again. Buffy's eyes followed her this time. Willow smiled down at her and reached for Buffy's nipples. "Nothing you can say will make me stop loving you. Nothing," she repeated.

"Yes," Buffy moaned. Each time she moved, Willow slid against her, and it was all Buffy could do to let Willow stay atop her.

Willow kissed Buffy again, tenderly at first, and built it into a passionate osculation that left Buffy panting and writhing while Willow's hands began a slow journey the length of Buffy's body.

Willow demonstrated again that she was in no hurry as she pulled her fingers slowly through her lover's wetness. She brought them to her mouth and sucked Buffy's juices off of them while Buffy watched. Buffy groaned and reached for Willow.

This time, Willow let Buffy pull her down. She let Buffy lead their kiss, and smiled when Buffy moaned at her index finger sliding in. Willow added another finger, and another, rotating her wrist with each movement. Buffy's hands moved frantically wherever they could on Willow, and she broke off their kiss to howl while she came.

When Buffy opened her eyes, Willow was watching her intently. Willow slowed her movements, causing Buffy to gasp, "Don't stop."

"Not a chance. You're so beautiful like this."

"You. Oh. Oh. Oh. You too," Buffy forced out.

"Come for me, sweetheart," Willow urged, and Buffy did, flexing up off the bed while holding Willow's gaze.

A moment later, her muscles still rhythmically clasping Willow's fingers, Buffy pulled Willow close again and rolled them over so she was over Willow. A drop of sweat fell from her face to Willow's chest, and Buffy hurried to lap it up. She raised her hips, grasped Willow's wrist, and moved the redhead's hand to her breast. Willow was quick to coat both of Buffy's nipples with her wet fingers before sliding both hands to Buffy's back to pull her down.

"I don't want to hurt you," Buffy panted. "Or her."

"You won't," Willow answered. She smiled at Buffy for a moment, and shifted to slide her thigh between Buffy's. They both moaned at the sensation, and Buffy pressed her body the length of Willow's.

Two hours later, Willow slid from their bed. While she pulled on her robe, Buffy asked her sleepily, "Where you goin?"

"I'll be right back," Willow promised, and bent to kiss Buffy. Buffy held her there for a few extra seconds before releasing her.

Willow went first to the bathroom, then padded down to the kitchen. Willow got two bottles of water, and after a brief internal debate, took the can of whipped cream, too. As she closed the door, she heard a key in the front door lock and silently swore. Then she shrugged and headed for the stairs.

By the time she reached the living room, Faith and Tara were all ready on the stairs, and Willow sighed in relief. She didn't want to hear Faith's teasing, no matter how justified, and walked slowly to give them time to reach their room before beginning to climb the stairs.

Willow slipped into their room quietly, and stood at the door for a few moments to admire Buffy before walking to the bed. Buffy appeared to be sleeping, head resting on one folded arm and the sheet draped carelessly across her hips.

"I'm awake," Buffy said without opening her eyes.

"Good." Willow crossed the room quickly and placed her finds on the nightstand. Then, she took off her robe and laid it over the vanity chair on her way back into bed. She pressed herself against Buffy's back, and giggled when Buffy complained about her cold feet.

Joyce was the first one up the next morning. She knew the girls had been out late, and looked forward to some quiet time. While coffee brewed, she went downstairs to see how far the project had progressed. She was impressed to see that the framing was completed and half the drywall was hung, as well. Xander promised to bring a couple friends from work with him today, so they could take care of the electrical and plumbing. He planned to complete construction by Sunday evening, leaving the rest of the work – painting, installing floor tiles and trim molding – for Faith and Tara to finish during the week.

Joyce was nearly finished the paper when Tara came downstairs. They exchanged good mornings, and Tara began breakfast. The smell soon brought the others down, and Xander, with his usual impeccable timing, arrived in time for Tara to make enough for him, too.

Joyce left for the gallery before the noise commenced. Buffy and Willow went back upstairs to shower before the water was turned off, and came downstairs in time to let Xander's friends in and show them to the basement before they left.

They walked through the park before heading downtown. Buffy was looking for bodies or evidence of anything unusual. To her surprise, she found nothing, and after that, let Willow set the pace and direction of their walk.

By mid-afternoon, Buffy was bored with their seeminglessly aimless wandering and tried to convince Willow to head back home. The redhead asked for one more stop, and Buffy let herself be pulled into the hardware store. Willow led them to the decorating section, and they began to talk about the nursery. They decided on yellow with white trim, and looked at borders, but couldn't decide, so Buffy scooped up a catalog. "Anywhere else?" she asked Willow when they reached the sidewalk again.

"Home, I think," Willow answered. "We should check on your mom first."

"Good idea," Buffy said, and they walked to the gallery.

Joyce was preparing to close up, and was happy to let Buffy lock the back. Buffy took the opportunity to check the alley behind. It looked normal except for a blue line painted parallel to and a foot from the back door. She made note to ask Tara whether it was there when she did the protection spell, and made certain that both the latch and the lock fell into place.

Joyce stopped to get sandwiches for dinner, and left Buffy and Willow to organize things while she went down to check the basement. Xander was gone, and Faith and Tara were painting. Most of the paint was where it belonged, and it looked like the room would be completely finished in the next couple days. Faith assured Joyce they'd be up in a few minutes, and Joyce left them to finish.

Buffy woke first Sunday. She watched Willow, smiling, and stroked her lover's hair. It wasn't long before Willow asked, without opening her eyes, "What?"

"I love you."

"Love you, too." Willow stretched, and cracked one eye to look at her girlfriend. "You're up early."

"Want donuts?" Buffy offered.

"In bed?"

"If you want."

"Sprinkles."

"K." Buffy leaned over and kissed Willow gently. "I'll be back soon."

"Get the LA paper, too, please."

"As you wish." Buffy smiled over her shoulder. She stopped at the door and turned to look at Willow, who had pulled Buffy's pillow against her. "I love you, Willow."

Although her eyes didn't open, Willow smiled. "I love you, too, Buff."

Buffy closed the door quietly and went downstairs. Halfway down, she heard a noise and turned to see Faith standing in the hall.

"Everything all right?" Faith asked.

"Yup. I'm going to get donuts."

"Chocolate chocolate?" Faith asked hopefully.

"Sure. You coming?"

"Yeah, gimme a minute."

While she waited for Faith, Buffy took a quick trip to the basement. It looked completely different, and she was impressed with how much had been done since Friday night. When she heard Faith on the stairs, Buffy hurried to meet her at the door.


	11. Chapter 11

By 6:50 Tuesday night, Buffy was resigned that she and Willow would have an audience for their meeting with Liz. Faith helped her move the furniture, and Tara brought down extra pillows, and Buffy pouted on the sofa while they waited for the midwife to arrive. Willow saw her pout and whispered something that caused Buffy to cheer up considerably and Faith to raise an eyebrow in her direction. Willow chose to ignore Faith for the time being.

Tara let Liz in a few minutes before 7:00. They began, as they had before, by measuring Willow, and then they got down on the floor and began. Liz ignored the three extra sets of eyes. Willow concentrated on learning, and Buffy concentrated on Willow, and after a few minutes, Faith was bored and wandered off downstairs.

After Liz left, Tara went downstairs to find Faith washing a paintbrush in the sink. Tara stuck her head in to see that Faith had completed the second coat of paint on the trim, meaning that they could put down carpet tiles the next evening.

"Good job," Tara said.

Faith shrugged and rinsed the bristles one final time. "They done?"

"Yeah. I think Buffy's waiting for you to help her with the sofa."

"No problem." Faith leaned against the sink and looked at Tara. "You want kids?"

"Some day."

Faith nodded, then headed for the stairs. Tara caught her hand. "You?"

"What?"

"Do y-you want kids?"

"I dunno." Faith shrugged, then leaned over to buss Tara's cheek. "I'm gonna check on B."

Tara nodded and tried to release Faith's hand, but Faith held on, so Tara followed her upstairs.

Before starting patrol, Buffy and Faith went to Giles' apartment to check in. As usual, books, several open, covered his dining room table. They filled him in on recent occurrences, and when they finished, Buffy asked, "So what's the deal?"

"I don't know. It is rather odd, this influx of vampires at this time of year. You haven't seen anything else, signs of other demon activity, for example?" Giles asked with a small frown.

"Nope," Faith answered.

"So you're going to do the research thing, and we're going to patrol, right?" Buffy asked hopefully.

"Fine. Be certain to let me know if you learn anything else."

Buffy and Faith looked at each other and said one word. "Willie's." Both smiled grimly at the thought of a visit to the demon bar.

"Later, Giles," Buffy said, and she and Faith took off before he could change his mind about wanting help with research.

Willie's was their last stop after sweeping the cemeteries, downtown alleys, and the Bronze. It was empty except for Willie himself, who leaned on the bar and watched baseball on the set in the corner. He groaned when he saw the Slayers.

"Business isn't bad enough, you gotta come in, too," he whined.

"What's goin' on, Willie?" Faith asked.

"Nothin, Slayer, honest. Haven't seen anyone all night."

Buffy looked around. "Obviously. Where is everyone?"

Willie held his hands up in an attempt to placate them. "I dunno, maybe on vacation. It's always slow during the summer, you know that."

"Then why have we killed so many vampires this week?" Buffy asked calmly.

"To torture me," he muttered.

Faith smiled unpleasantly. "We can, if that's what you want."

"Geez," Willie whined, "I was kiddin'. I don't know nothin'. If things don't pick up soon, I'm gonna close up shop for a while."

"I'll believe it when I see it," Buffy answered, and jerked her head toward the door. She and Faith left as quickly as they had arrived.

"You believe him?" Buffy asked as they started for home.

"It was cleaner in there than it's been in a long time, so, yeah, I think I do."

"What's that got to do with anything?"

"Man can't stand around and watch the ballgame all the time," Faith explained, "and if there isn't anybody in there to make a new mess, it's bound to get cleaner." Under her voice, she added, "Roof. Next block."

Buffy glanced up casually. "Council," she confirmed.

"It's been slow tonight. What'cha say we have some fun?"

"Whaddya have in mind?" Buffy asked.

"First," Faith stepped into the shadows and pulled Buffy along so they both disappeared. They waited for their night vision to kick in, and Faith gestured a plan to Buffy, who agreed with a grin.

A few minutes later, after climbing up the building to the roof, they each had the man by one arm.

"It's not nice to spy on people," Buffy growled.

"I'm just doing my job."

"Some job," Faith answered. "Following girls around. There's laws against that, ya know."

"You do your job, and there won't be problems," he answered.

Buffy snorted, then stepped in front of him. "I do my job every night, and all you people ever do is give me problems. You want to take a message to your boss?" she asked rhetorically. "Tell Quentin Travers to find his own playground, cause this one's mine." Then she shoved him hard enough that Faith let go so he would fall to the gravel roof. The Slayers stood over him, and Buffy added a final thought. "I'm keeping her," she pointed at Faith, "too. Your funky little games are over, got it?"

The man nodded, and the Slayers disappeared from his sight.

After a block, Faith asked, "Whaddya mean, you're keepin' me?"

"I need you to stay and help," Buffy said.

"But, but, Cleveland," Faith began.

"But nothing, Faith. Willow's pregnant. I can't keep an eye on her and the Hellmouth all at the same time. Besides, Cleveland will be there."

"Red doesn't even like me."

"Yeah, well, you better fix that, cause you aren't going anywhere."

"Really?"

"Really," Buffy confirmed.

"B, you're the best."

"Don't you forget it, either," Buffy grinned, and broke into a jog.

After work the next evening, Faith went looking for Willow. She found her on the back porch, enjoying the weather. Buffy, Joyce, and Tara were in the kitchen, and Willow looked surprised to see Faith alone.

Faith took a deep breath. "Can we talk?" she asked.

Willow, curious, answered with her own question. "About what?"

"I, um, I want to apologize."

"What for?" Willow asked warily.

"Everything. I, uh, I just, I was jealous."

"Of me?" Willow squeaked.

"Yeah." Faith took another deep breath. "You had her, no matter what I did. She always went to you, always listened to you. I wanted that, and you, and when I couldn't have what I wanted, I tried to destroy it, and I'm really sorry."

Willow stared at Faith without saying anything.

Faith held her gaze as long as she could, then looked out over the yard. "I know you don't like me, Red, and I don't blame you, but things are different now, and…" Faith's voice trailed off.

"And what?" Willow prompted.

Faith looked back at her. "It won't happen again. I know it's just words, but it's the truth."

"I never understood why you," Willow gestured. "Why, Faith?"

Faith sighed. "I was scared. You guys had everything. Giles. Mrs. S. Enough to eat. Clean place to stay. Each other. You never gave me a chance."

"You never gave us a chance. Coming in all, hey, new Slayer coming through. And your stories." Willow rolled her eyes. "All you had to do was be yourself."

"You don't know anything about what I needed then, Red." Faith's voice dropped a little. "And you never tried to find out."

"When was I going to find out? Every time I turned around, you were pulling Buffy off to do something dangerous or stupid or illegal. You never wanted to be around us. You acted like we were all little kids."

Faith counted to 10 while she thought about what Willow said. "I did. And you were. You had parents taking care of you."

"Buffy had her mom. The rest of us were taking care of each other the best we could. If you had dropped the badass act for a minute, you would have seen that we were all just as lost as you."

Faith turned away from Willow again. After a few seconds, she said, "It's over and done now. It won't happen again."

Willow stood up. "That's not good enough, Faith."

"Whaddya want, blood? Didn't B get enough last time?"

"That's exactly what I'm talking about. Things get hard, you get harder. It doesn't work like that here. And you know what, F? I don't care what you think of me, but if you ever, ever, ever hurt Buffy again, that coma's gonna seem like summer vacation." Willow pushed past the younger woman and went into the house. She ignored everyone and went upstairs.


	12. Chapter 12

Buffy and Tara looked at each other. They hadn't heard the conversation, but had felt the emotional overload from their partners. Without saying anything, they separated, one going outside, the other upstairs.

Tara closed the screen door slowly so it wouldn't slam. "Everything all right?" she asked cautiously.

"She is the stubbornest, aargh!" Faith, fists clenched, turned to Tara. "I was trying to apologize, and she turned it into a crusade against me. Again."

"What did she say?"

"Trust me, you don't want to know." Faith lowered herself to the step and held her head in her hands. "B is gonna skin me this time."

"I doubt that." Tara sat beside Faith and put an arm around her.

"C'mon, Blondie, I just really pissed off her pregnant girlfriend while I was supposed to be making nice. Shit."

"It'll be all right," Tara said comfortingly.

Faith snorted. "Yup, and after that, I'll hit the freakin' Powerball." She sighed again.

Tara let them sit there for a few seconds before asking Faith, "What were you apologizing for?"

"Long story. Long, long story."

"I have time."

Faith groaned, then cut her eyes toward Tara. "Raincheck?"

"Not this time." Tara's tone was firm, and Faith sighed again.

"I told you about the mayor," she began.

Upstairs, Buffy opened the bedroom door cautiously. Willow was muttering and pacing, and Buffy let herself in and closed the door. "What was that about?"

"She doesn't get it. After all this time, she still doesn't get it."

"Who doesn't get what, Willow?"

"Faith." Willow stopped pacing and turned toward Buffy, who looked guiltily at the floor. Willow's eyes opened wide. "You." She took a step toward Buffy with each successive word, until the blonde was backed up to the door. "Put. Her. Up. To. It."

"Will, you're scaring me."

"What are you thinking? That it all goes away with some magic words?"

"No magic words. Just talking."

"It doesn't change anything, Buffy. Words don't change anything that she did or anything she could do. I know you guys worked out your stuff, and that's good, but I can't."

"Why not?"

"Buffy, it's Faith," Willow said, pouring all of her anger at every act into that single syllable.

"Yeah, it's Faith," Buffy agreed. "But she's different. We all grew up some. Give her a chance."

"What do you think I've been doing?"

They looked at each other, and Buffy finally asked the question she had avoided for so long. "What did she do to you?"

Willow's mouth opened and closed while she tried to formulate an answer that would leave everyone alive and Joyce's carpets blood free. Her eyes darkened while she recalled Faith's pleasure at hurting her, both physically and emotionally.

"Will?" Buffy asked gently.

"Nothing," Willow snapped.

"What did she do?" Buffy asked again, her voice harsher than she intended.

"She hurt me, Buffy," Willow said, and looked at the floor.

"You didn't tell me everything that night, did you?"

"No." Willow turned and crossed to the window. She wrapped her arms around herself and looked out.

A few moments later, Buffy followed. She stood behind Willow and circled her with her arms, but the redhead remained tense. "Are you going to?"

"Why?"

"Why?" Buffy repeated, puzzled.

"Why tell you? What will it change?"

Buffy gently turned Willow to face her. "It won't change anything. I love you, no matter what you tell me. Or don't tell me."

Willow studied Buffy's face for several long seconds, then rested her forehead on Buffy's shoulder. Buffy pulled her closer and waited, but Willow stayed silent.

"I guess this isn't a good time to tell you she's staying," Buffy said.

"I all ready figured that."

"You don't have to like her. Just get along, okay?" Buffy asked.

"Yeah."

They stood a little longer, until Willow said, "I'm gonna lay down for a while."

"Want company?"

"Not really."

"Oh." Buffy swallowed her disappointment and dropped her arms. "I'll check on you in a bit," she said, and left Willow standing in front of the window.

Buffy went in search of Faith, and found her talking with Tara in the back yard. She watched them for a few moments before clearing her throat and exiting the door. Faith looked up at her, then away. "What did you say to her?" Buffy demanded.

"I apologized."

"You had to say something else."

Tara tried to get up, but Faith maintained a strong grip on her hand, and Tara remained seated on the step beside her.

"I swear, B, I didn't say anything. All I did was tell her I'm sorry for being a jerk before."

"Like that?"

"Yeah."

"So why is she mad?"

"Cause she still thinks I'm a jerk?" Faith offered.

"You're not a jerk," Tara said softly.

Buffy drew a deep breath. She didn't like tension, or confrontation, except with demons, and didn't want to live among it if it could be avoided. "Fix it," she told Faith, and went back indoors.

Faith swore softly. "How am I gonna do that?" she asked Tara.

"Time."

* * *

The line of blue paint turned out to be the Sunnydale Water Department's most recent attempt to track water lines, Buffy learned after finding them all over town. She crossed that off her list of things to worry about, leaving it full of the regular things: Willow, the baby, her mother, the weekly vampire invasion, which occurred on Friday this week.

Willow glared at Faith when she deposited the dazed and bleeding blonde in the redhead's custody, and Faith dropped her eyes and backed away without saying anything. After she got Buffy situated, Willow tore downstairs and found Faith waiting for her in the kitchen.

"Why did you let her get hurt?"

"Let her?" Faith answered indignantly, after removing an icepack from her face. "I did not let her get hurt!"

"That's why she has a concussion and four stitches," Willow said sarcastically.

"Look, Red, you want to be mad at me, fine, be mad. I don't give a shit." Faith put the ice back on her throbbing face. "Do your worse."

"Don't push me, Faith," Willow answered in a low voice.

"Whatever." Faith looked at Willow through her good eye. "You finished?"

Willow clenched her fists and spun on her heel. Faith's good night followed her out of the kitchen. She sat on the stairs for a minute to get her temper under control before returning to their room. Buffy was restless, and Willow hurried to get into bed so Buffy would sleep calmly.

Faith tried to be quiet, but her boots were loud on the stairs, and Tara was sitting on the bed waiting for her. When she saw that Faith was hurt, Tara maneuvered her to the bathroom to clean up. Afterwards, they went to bed. Faith held ice against her cheek and stared at the ceiling long after Tara settled against her into sleep.

Apart from a slight headache, Buffy was fine in the morning. She admired Faith's lingering shiner while they shared coffee in the back yard. This weekend's project was the nursery. They needed to paint and decorate before furniture could be moved in. So far, they had a crib and an old rocker, both of which Xander was refinishing.

Willow, at Buffy's insistence, went with Joyce to the gallery, and spent her time updating Joyce's computer software and tweaking the inventory control and bookkeeping programs. Her day passed quickly, and they returned home to find everyone, including Anya and Giles, hanging out in the kitchen while Tara and Faith prepared supper.

After eating and cleaning up, the Slayers left to patrol. Xander and Anya took off for the video store. Giles left, too, leaving Joyce and Tara reading, while Willow fiddled with her laptop. Willow went up to bed early, and was asleep when Buffy returned early from a routine and boring patrol. Buffy curled around Willow's back, with her hand resting on the redhead's growing belly, and fell quickly asleep.

_They were being chased by something Buffy didn't immediately recognize. The panicky fear she felt was nearly overwhelming, and she tried to hurry everyone along. The dark night, normally safe and comforting, made her feel worse. It meant she couldn't see it, or tell from which direction it would come._

_They stopped to eat because Willow insisted. Dawn had been extraordinarily good, and they let her order whatever she wanted. Buffy looked across the street at the used vehicles and spotted something big enough for all of them. Maybe they could outrun it, or at least buy some time to come up with a better plan, and she left her exhausted family staring at the tabletop with bloodshot eyes while they waited for food._

_She finally caught a bit of luck in the sales office. The manager recognized her, although she had no idea who he was or when she had saved him. He completed the paperwork as quickly as possible, while she fidgeted and the lot jockey gave it a once over and filled the tank. She had him move it to the diner parking lot, and rejoined the silent group. Buffy slid the keys to Xander, and wolfed down the two now cold meals Willow had ordered for her._

_The van seemed crowded with all of them inside. Xander drove, with Anya riding shotgun. Joyce and Giles took the next seat; Buffy, Dawn and Willow the third; and Faith and Tara climbed into the back bench._

_"Where to?" Xander asked in a scratchy voice._

_"East," Buffy said. "As fast as we can go." She tried to keep her tone level, but everyone could tell how close to breaking she was when she added, "It's closer."_

_Xander nodded, and started the van. He eased it into traffic, and followed Buffy's instruction._

_In the back, Tara began to whine, and Faith tried to quiet her. Dawn climbed over the seat, and sat beside Tara. She whispered something that made the blonde witch giggle. Faith smiled and mouthed thanks to the youngster._

_Buffy, exhausted, lay against Willow and closed her eyes. She saw no way they could win, but they had to try. First, though, they needed to buy some time._

Buffy's thrashing woke Willow. She tried to calm the Slayer without waking her, but finally had to shake Buffy. Buffy sat up, panting, and searched the room with wide eyes.

"What's wrong?" Willow asked softly.

Buffy turned to her, and breathed deeply in relief. "Bad dream," she answered.

"Lay down," Willow said. When Buffy did, she pulled her close. Buffy rested her head on Willow's shoulder and returned her hand to her partner's stomach. Their daughter was awake, too, and Buffy smiled. Willow stroked her hair until they both fell back to sleep.


	13. Chapter 13

Downstairs, Faith fared no better. She twisted in the midst of a dream she couldn't wake from.

_She had promised to meet Tara on campus for some fair, but the gallery was busy, and Faith couldn't get away on time. Joyce shooed her out the door half an hour late, and Faith hurried toward their meeting place._

_The campus was crowded, and Faith resented the time it took to work her way through the crowd. Suddenly, she knew something was wrong, and became more aggressive, physically moving people aside with a mumbled "excuse me."_

_When she reached Tara, the blonde was alone on the bench, but Faith's sigh of relief disappeared when Tara looked at her without recognition._

_"Tara?" Faith asked cautiously, and sat beside her on the bench. She touched the girl's hand, and Tara whimpered. Faith saw blood, and the swelling, and bit down on a torrent of swear words. She looked around for the one responsible, but there was no trace of it._

_Faith moved to Tara's other side. The motion interrupted Tara's tuneless humming, and Faith slid one arm around her. "Let's go get your hand fixed," she said softly, and helped Tara to her feet._

Faith sat up, jerking the bedclothes with her, and Tara asked sleepily, "What?"

"Are you all right?"

The distress in Faith's voice brought Tara to her side. "I'm fine," she said softly. "What's wrong?"

Faith shook her head and turned to examine Tara. Once she was certain Tara was unharmed, she said, "Bad dream."

"It's over now," Tara answered, and lay down. "C'mere," she coaxed Faith.

Faith went willingly into Tara's arms. She drew a deep breath and took comfort in Tara's familiar scent. Tara kissed the top of Faith's head and rubbed her back until the brunette's breathing was regular. Then she let herself go back to sleep.

Everyone slept in the next morning, and the afternoon was spent arranging furniture in the nursery. Buffy and Willow put up a border of ducklings splashing in the rain. Faith, Tara, and Joyce took on the contents of the several boxes that had arrived during the week, which turned into a changing table, a dresser, and a mobile in primary colors.

When the work was finished, the others left Buffy and Willow in the nursery. Buffy cradled Willow from behind as they took in the changes. Buffy's hand rubbed Willow's belly. "Okay?" Buffy asked softly.

"Yeah." Willow smiled and leaned back to kiss Buffy. She covered Buffy's hand and guided to one side so Buffy could feel the baby's energetic kicking.

"Wow," Buffy said softly.

"She kicks like a Slayer," Willow teased.

Buffy smiled hugely and kissed Willow's neck and cheek. "Have you thought about names?"

"Not really."

"I like Dawn," Buffy said softly.

Willow turned to face Buffy and smiled. "Pretty." After a few seconds, she said, "Dawn Marie Rosenberg Summers."

Buffy smiled and kissed Willow gently. "Sounds good."

"Mmm," Willow hummed, and got as close as she could. "She'll be here soon. Good thing we have her name picked out."

Buffy cupped Willow's cheek. "I am so happy about this, Willow," she said after a few long seconds. "You, her, us, everything."

"Me, too." Willow leaned her face into Buffy's caress and closed her eyes. "I love you so much, Buffy."

"I love you, Will." Buffy kissed her again.

They stood together in the room for a long time, looking around and at each other, until Willow apologized and pulled away. "Baby on the bladder," she explained, and Buffy let her go.

* * *

Faith and Tara had a date that evening, so Buffy took the opportunity to speak to Giles alone. He let her in, surprised when she went directly to the table and took a seat.

"Something bad is coming," she said.

"Could you be more specific?"

"I've been having dreams, and they've been getting worse. Something is coming, and it scares the heck outta me." Buffy ran a hand through her hair and took a deep breath. "They started in the fall, right when Oz came back."

"Why did you wait so long to tell me?" Giles interrupted.

"It was just one dream, then, and it seemed so far in the future." Buffy hung her head. "I had another one, um, in the spring, and one last night."

"The same dream each time?"

"I wish. That would be way easier to deal with."

"Go on," Giles encouraged.

"The first one, it was good." Buffy paused, smiling. "It was me and Will and Dawn at home."

"Dawn?"

"The baby."

"Ah."

"Anyway, Will and I were in bed, and the baby cried, and I went to the nursery to get her. I changed her diaper and brought her back to bed with us so Will could feed her. Then the alarm clock went off and I woke up."

"That's all?" Giles asked cautiously.

"Yeah."

"What about the next one?"

"It wasn't nice. We were all at the hospital. Willow and Dawn and me and Xander and Anya and Faith and you. We were there because of Tara. Something happened to her. I don't know what, just that Faith was totally wigged over it. Oh, and Dawn was like, I dunno, like 10 or something.

"Then last night, I had another one. It was worse. We were all running, literally running through the streets, and Will insisted we stop to eat. I left you guys to eat and bought a big van, big enough for all of us, and told Xander to drive east as fast as he could." Buffy looked at the table, not seeing the books, before she continued. "Something was still wrong with Tara, and Dawn was bigger, and I was so tired and so scared, scared like I haven't been since I went to fight the Master, knowing I was going to die and couldn't do anything to stop it."

Giles removed his glasses and began polishing them. Buffy's admission of fear bothered him more than anything she had described to him. "I'll begin researching," he reassured her.

"Please don't tell Willow. She totally flipped over the first two, and I need to tell her before we get into deep research mode."

"All right," he agreed, and replaced his glasses. "Perhaps this has to do with the vampire attacks."

"Maybe," Buffy said doubtfully. She got to her feet. "I'm going to patrol, though I doubt I'll find anything."

"Before you go," Giles said, and Buffy groaned and retook her seat. "Please stop trying to intimidate the Council."

"What do you mean?" she asked innocently.

"I mean, no more tackling Council members on the roof, and no more threats."

"Then they better be more stealthy. If we can find them, we're going to bust 'em."

"Furthermore," Giles continued, ignoring Buffy's outburst, "Faith cannot remain here. There is an unprotected Hellmouth in Cleveland."

"Faith is staying," Buffy said, in a tone that brooked no argument. "Willow's having a baby, Faith's involved in the Slayer dreams, and I don't trust the Council not to kill her as soon as she's out of Sunnydale. Plus, she's getting better. Not all crazy and dark and beating vampires to a pulp before staking them. When we get through this, whatever it is, we'll discuss it again. But for now, I promised Faith she's staying, and she is."

"That is not your decision."

Buffy smiled grimly. "It's not theirs, so that leaves it to me and Faith, and she's staying. You want to go toe to toe with Mom over it?"

Giles sighed hugely, realizing that while he could conceivably convince the Slayers to change plans, Joyce would not agree to anything that put either girl at greater risk, and the Council be damned. "No, Buffy, I don't. We'll discuss this again later."

"Fine." Buffy stood up again. "Anything else?"

"No."

"Cool. Good night, Giles."

"Good night, Buffy. Be careful."

Buffy swept the cemeteries, staking a couple new vampires, then stalked through downtown. She saw Faith and Tara leaving the movie theater, both laughing, and immediately thought of Willow. Buffy wondered why Willow couldn't, or wouldn't, see how Faith had changed, was still changing.

She headed over to the Bronze, where she staked one vampire in the alley, and lured a second one outside to be dusted. Then she headed home. Although it was early, Willow was all ready in bed. Buffy showered before sliding in beside her. She snuggled up to Willow and put her arm across her. She whispered, "I love you," before closing her eyes.

_Red eyes, demon eyes, nearly a foot apart, burst into the Magic Box, splintering the entrance into glass shards and slivers of wood. It moved so quickly, they couldn't react, and a long, forked tongue reached toward Dawn, and both Buffy and Faith moved to protect her. It wasn't necessary, as – snake? worm? something worse? – backed out as quickly as it had entered._

_Faith ran to follow it, but Buffy checked first on Willow and Dawn. Once she was certain they were fine, she grabbed Giles and pulled him outside, glad that he had finally ditched the shuddering, grey, rust bucket in favor of a midlife crisis rocket red BMW convertible._

_Buffy directed him, urging Giles to use the car to its capacity. He did, slowing only so Faith could dive into the back, before flooring the accelerator again. They caught up near the far edge of the park, where both Slayers easily vaulted the eight-foot fence. Their pursuit paused only long enough for them to grab makeshift weapons, a swingset support for Faith and decorative anchor chain for Buffy, before they split up to flank the creature._

_Faith met it first, battering it with the heavy metal pole, slowing it enough that Buffy could leap onto its back and swing the chain around it just behind its massive head. Buffy pulled on the chain with all of her considerable strength while it bucked and twisted in a futile effort to avoid beating by one Slayer and to shake the other off._

_It seemed like hours to Buffy, as her muscles complained about the constant strain. She held on, even after it fell to the ground, and Faith continued to beat on the huge head until it was nothing but a pulpy mess. When Buffy was certain it wouldn't move again, she let go of the chain and slid off of it. She called Faith, who took a few more swings before responding._

"Buffy," Willow said, sharply this time.

Buffy sat up, looking around. Her breath was harsh, and once she realized they were safe, she wrapped Willow in her arms and buried her face in the redhead's neck. Willow pulled Buffy closer and tried to comfort her.

Once the Slayer was calmer, Willow asked, "Another dream?"

"Yeah." Buffy pulled Willow onto her lap.

"You gonna tell me or do I have to throw another fit?"

Buffy sighed. "It's bad, Will. Something's coming, something big."

"Tell me," Willow demanded.

Buffy recounted both her previous dream and this one. When she finished, she rubbed Willow's stomach. "I won't let it hurt you. Either of you."

"I know," Willow answered absently, as she tried to piece together the seemingly incongruous dreams. "Have you told Giles?"

"Yeah." Buffy stilled the movement of her hand when she felt the baby push against her palm.

"What did he say?"

"Research."

"I can do that," Willow said. She turned her attention back to Buffy. "Think you can sleep?"

"I'll try." Buffy laid back, pulling Willow with her. She kissed Willow's head several times while she shifted, trying to find a comfortable position without moving from Buffy's embrace.

Finally she did, lying on her side atop Buffy, who held her tightly. It took a while, but they went back to sleep.


	14. Chapter 14

Liz put the tape measure away and said, "She'll be here soon."

"Not soon enough," Willow muttered. Her back ached all the time and she ran to the bathroom at least twice an hour.

"You have my numbers, right?" Liz asked.

"By the phone," Buffy answered.

"Good. You've got the breathing techniques down, so let's talk about delivery."

"Take out?" Buffy asked.

Willow snickered while Liz looked at Buffy with an arched eyebrow. "The baby," she said after a moment.

"Oh."

"You really should go to the hospital, or at least a birthing center," Liz continued.

"Not gonna happen," Buffy said firmly.

"All right, then you need to know some things in case I can't get here," Liz began.

"You aren't going to show us that movie they showed in health class, are you?" Willow asked.

"No." Liz removed a notebook from her bag and handed it to Willow.

Willow flipped through the pages. Buffy looked over her shoulder. The delivery photos made her shiver. "I've killed things that aren't that gross," Buffy mumbled.

Willow snickered again, and handed the notebook back to Liz, who refused it. "Keep it. Study it. Better to be prepared." Liz stood up. "I'll see you Thursday."

Buffy got up and saw her to the door. As usual, she waited until Liz was pulling out of the driveway to go back inside.

Willow was studying the notebook intently. Buffy dropped onto the couch beside her. "So what's the what?"

"We still have a bunch of stuff to do."

"What? The nursery's all ready. Xander brought the crib over last week."

"We need to get stuff together so we're ready if Liz can't make it on time."

"Like what?"

"Delivery kit. Alcohol, scissors, string, towels," Willow ticked off. "And you need to check this out. You might have to catch her."

"Will, that's insane. Liz lives nearby. She'll be here."

"Think of it like a fight, Buffy. We need to do our research so you know how to kill the demon."

"All right," Buffy said after a few moments. "I'll look at it tomorrow."

"Ok," Willow answered. She turned and kissed Buffy's cheek. "Go patrol."

"It's my night off. Wanna get ice cream?"

"Absolutely." Willow closed the notebook and set it aside. She got to her feet and headed to the bathroom, leaving Buffy to get her wallet and keys.

After ice cream, they went to the mall and wandered around. They oohed and aahed over tiny clothes, and bought a few things. When Buffy noticed Willow slowing down, she steered them toward the exit.

Buffy stiffened as they neared their vehicle.

"What?" Willow asked quietly.

"Vampires," Buffy answered, without slowing.

"Stupid bloodsuckers," Willow grumbled. "How many?"

"Two. Stay back."

When they were within one car of their own, one of the vampires stepped from the shadows into the orange glow of the sodium vapor light. Buffy stopped, and Willow took half a step to stand behind her.

"Move or die," Buffy said.

The vampire raised its hands. "I have a message."

"I don't care."

"You will," the other vampire said. A moment later, it burst into dust, revealing a grinning Faith. She flicked her wrist, burying a stake into the first vampire's back, and it, too, went poof.

"They so need some better material," Faith said, and went to retrieve her stake.

"Want a ride?" Buffy asked.

"Nah, I still have a few more stops to make. And they didn't have any messages," Faith added, looking at Willow. "They wanted our help."

"For what?"

"To stop whoever or whatever is making those big groups and sending them after us."

"Vampire turf wars. Gotta love 'em," Buffy quipped, and helped Willow into the passenger seat. She turned to say something else to Faith, but she was gone.

"Hope she tells Giles," Willow said while Buffy buckled her seatbelt. She had given up arguing with Buffy over it. Instead, she cupped the Slayer's breast with her hand, and suspected that was why Buffy continued to insist on strapping her in.

"She will," Buffy said calmly, and closed the passenger door. She walked in front of the vehicle to the driver's side and climbed in.

The drive home was uneventful. They showed their purchases to Joyce and Tara, then spent the rest of the evening on the sofa, watching Animal Planet while Buffy massaged Willow's feet.

In the meantime, Faith swept two more cemeteries on the way to Giles' condo. He let her in without comment, and waited for her at the table while she drank two glasses of water from the tap.

Faith slid into a chair across from Giles. "There's some weird shit going on," she began.

Giles nodded.

"First off, you know we got all these vampires coming outta the woodwork. Tonight, I got stopped twice by vamps asking for help. Two more were waitin' on B and Red at the mall. The first one said they wanted us to protect them from somethin', they wouldn't say what, exactly, just that it was what's gatherin' all those vamps we kill every week."

"What did they say?"

"Not much. They were too scared, and I staked 'em."

"Next time, bring it here. Perhaps I can get some information."

Faith nodded. She paused a moment, then got up and went back to the kitchen for more water. When she came back, she fidgeted for half a minute before telling him, "I had this weird dream."

"About what?"

"Blondie."

"Would you please be more specific?"

Faith shook her head to remove the vision of the dream. "Something hurt her. Bad. And it was like I knew what did, but I couldn't see it."

Giles waited a few seconds to see whether Faith would say more. When she didn't, he said, "If you have any others, please let me know. I'll see what I can find out. Do you need anything else?"

"Nah, just wanted to let you know about the vamps," Faith said, but didn't get up.

Giles waited nearly two minutes before asking, "Faith?"

"Yo."

"Are you certain there's nothing else?"

"You won't tell nobody."

"Not if you don't want me to."

"Red's really pissed at me," Faith said finally. "And B's pissed 'cause Red's pissed."

"Why is Willow upset?"

Faith looked at the table. "Remember when I was workin' for the mayor and you guys got the box of Gavrok?"

"And you had Willow."

"Uh huh. Anybody else woulda just took off. But not Red. She had to read those books first, so I found her in the mayor's office. I offered to let her go, and she just laughed. She said if I was gonna kill her, I had to look at her." Faith sighed. "She made me nuts. Still does." Faith hung her head lower. "I wanted her. And I wanted to hurt her 'cause I knew it would hurt B more than anything. So I did."

Giles carefully kept his face neutral. He had always suspected that something had occurred between them. Buffy had been so relieved to see Willow after the trade that she had overlooked the tremors and small bruises. He wondered whether Willow had ever told anyone what Faith was about to tell him, and waited patiently for her to continue.

"I'm not proud of what I did," Faith went on softly. "I don't even know why except I was so mad, and she kept pushing me. I slapped her, and she wouldn't shut up." Her voice fell, and Faith squeezed her eyes shut. "I jacked her up on the wall and kissed her. She was tryin' to fight, and oh, shit." She stopped again, and tried to get her ragged breathing back into order. "I put my knife to her throat to make her be still and, and, I raped her," Faith whispered hoarsely, and dropped her head into her hands.

Giles didn't move. He let Faith be for a few moments, and when she seemed to be calmer, he said her name. When she looked at him, he saw her tears, and felt guilty again for not paying more attention when she arrived. He resolved that he wouldn't fail her again. "I am so sorry," he said sincerely. "I don't know what we can do to repair the damage, but we will find a way."

"I tried. Red blew me off."

"It's going to take time," he answered gently.

"That's what Tara said." Faith lowered her eyes to the table again.

After a long silence, Giles said, "If you need anything, Faith, come to me. I'm your Watcher, too."

Faith nodded. Her eyes remained focused on the table while she pulled herself together. After a few more minutes, she got to her feet. "I got a few more places to check."

"Be careful."

Faith nodded before she left.


	15. Chapter 15

Once it was dark, Buffy and Faith left to patrol. Willow had been uncharacteristically grouchy and restless all day, and Buffy was glad for the brief respite from the house, although she felt vaguely guilty about it.

While they walked, Faith related the part of her conversation with Giles that concerned the vampires. At the end of their block, a group of three waited. The Slayers, conscious of Giles' request for information, waited for the demons to make a move.

The one appearing youngest stepped forward, hands held out appeasingly. "Please listen to what we have to say before you stake us."

Buffy and Faith looked at each other. Buffy crossed her arms over her chest, and Faith glared, but waited. When the vampire realized that the Slayers agreed, she began talking quickly.

"Someone is assembling brigades of vampires and setting them against you. You have killed whole clans because of this."

"So?" Faith said.

"You would never encounter them except for these men. Most of them are from far away. Nearly all the vampires here have fled."

"And you're staying why?" Buffy asked.

"It's my home. I've been here my entire life. I like it here."

"You're fuckin' crazy, you know that, right?" Faith said.

"Be that as it may, we are asking you for help. If I meet you in a fair fight and you win, fine. But if I am compelled to march to my death for no reason of my own, that's wrong."

Buffy and Faith looked at each other before Buffy answered. "All right, here's the deal. You need to talk to a friend of ours before anybody makes any decisions. We'll meet you at the Espresso Pump in an hour. Just you three, no one else. And we're still going to stake any vampire we run across."

"Fine," the demon answered, and backed up without looking. When it reached its friends, all three of them took off in different directions.

Buffy and Faith walked quickly to Giles' condo and shared recent events. When they finished, he nodded and told them, "I'll meet you there."

The Slayers swept through two cemeteries before setting off for downtown. Buffy snagged a corner table while Faith got in line for drinks. When Giles arrived, they were waiting for him. Less than a minute later, the same three vampires entered. Two of them headed directly for the corner booth, while one got drinks.

The vampires were forced into the corners, and all of them fiddled with napkins while Giles studied them. He correctly identified their leader, and addressed her. "I am disinclined to make deals with demons."

"Goes both ways," she said curtly.

"What exactly do you want from us?" Giles asked.

"Someone is capturing vampires, importing them and causing fledges to be made so they can be sent against the Slayers."

"Why is this our concern?"

"They bring in dozens each week. One night, this numerical advantage will be your undoing."

"Why do you care?" Faith asked impatiently. "Without us, this town is yours."

"Without humans, we have nothing."

Giles brought the conversation back on track. "You told them that men are doing this."

"Yes. English, like you."

"Damn it, Giles," Buffy swore. "I told you the Council being here is trouble."

He ignored her. "How many?"

"Half a dozen. Maybe more."

"Where?"

"All around. There are at least two in Sunnydale all the time."

"Where are they keeping the vampires?"

"In the sewers. By force and by magic." She shuddered. "I got away, as did a few other older ones. The others have no chance." She paused. "They are gathering now, many, many more than before. They have magic users to break your spells."

Giles removed his glasses and began polishing them while he thought. "Where in the sewers? And where do you stay?"

"We sleep somewhere different every day."

"Where in the sewers?" Giles repeated.

"Where the Master stayed. The young ones are drawn there."

"I bet," Buffy muttered.

"We have twenty others who will fight with you to make them leave," the vampire offered finally.

"And then turn on us," Faith answered.

"No," the demon answered evenly. "A truce until this is finished. As I said before, if I lose to you in a fair fight, so be it."

Everyone looked at Giles. He looked at the tabletop, the cloth moving from one lens to the other as he considered everything. "A truce," he agreed finally, and began laying out the terms. "No one other than you three may contact us. Any information you get about those responsible, you bring to us immediately. If you are able to overpower one of them and bring him to me, it will be a huge help. Buffy and Faith will not engage you unless you attack. You will stay away from them except to exchange information. Agreed?"

"Agreed," everyone said in unison, but no one offered to shake hands.

"Tomorrow night," she warned, and the demons got up and left.

Buffy jumped Giles immediately. "If the Council is behind this, they're gonna get worse than pushed around a little."

"It could be someone else," Giles said unconvincingly.

"Oh, yeah, right, there are other limeys here who mess with vampires," Faith answered sarcastically.

"I'll make some calls," Giles answered slowly. "We'll meet tomorrow afternoon at your house. Load up on weapons and get Tara to reinforce the spells. Call Xander and get him there or make certain he understands to stay indoors. I suggest you both go home and get some sleep."

"All right," Buffy said. She stood up and picked up her drink. "We'll see you tomorrow."

"Later," Faith echoed, and they left.

A few moments later, Giles followed.

Between 5:30 and 6 p.m., the Scoobies assembled at 1630 Revello Drive. Giles was the first to arrive. Willow opened the door, and he handed her a stack of books. She took them to the living room while he returned to the car. This time, he balanced two bottles of wine, a bunch of cut flowers, and a huge salad bowl.

Willow took the salad and led Giles to the kitchen, where Buffy washed dishes as fast as her mother dirtied them. Willow made room in the refrigerator for the salad, and Buffy got a brief reprieve from the sink to find a vase for the flowers.

Giles was summarily shooed from the kitchen, and Willow followed him back to the living room. "Tara and Faith should be back soon," she said, and maneuvered herself into the most comfortable chair.

"Good."

"What's going on? Buffy's acting weird."

"We'll discuss it when everyone is here. How are you feeling?"

"Tired, mostly. And really uncomfortable. Thank the goddess for air conditioning."

"Buffy said you have a name for the baby."

"Dawn Marie," Willow said with a smile.

"Lovely," Giles said, smiling.

The doorbell rang, and the door opened before either could rise to get it. Xander and Anya entered. Xander had two grocery bags in one hand, and after he greeted Willow and Giles, he took them to the kitchen. Anya took a seat on the couch and groaned when she saw the pile of books. "Research or prophecy?" she demanded.

"We will discuss it after dinner."

"Prophecy," Anya decided. "Decent of you to let the condemned have a last meal."

"Anya, no one is condemned," Giles said evenly.

Anya ignored him and turned to Willow. "Five bucks says it has to do with the kid."

"Anya, that's quite enough," Giles barked.

"Fine," Anya huffed, and rose. She went to the kitchen.

A few minutes later, Faith and Tara came in. Faith looked uncomfortably from Giles to Willow while Tara reported what they had done to fortify the spells. Giles and Tara talked for a few moments while Faith shifted from foot to foot. When they finished, Tara pulled Faith from the room.

Willow frowned at their backs, wondering why Faith was so antsy. The baby shifted, her movement drawing Willow's attention. Willow sighed, then pushed herself up. "Excuse me," she said to Giles, and walked toward the bathroom.

There was a knock on the door as they finished dinner. Faith jumped up to answer it, and led Liz to the dining room. Buffy jumped up. "Crap. I totally forgot it's Thursday."

"We can do this tomorrow," Liz suggested.

"No, you're here, we're here." Buffy helped Willow up, and the three of them went into the living room.

Buffy was conscious of the quiet from the dining room, and tried to ignore it as they went through the ritual measuring and checking in. She paid attention to Willow while the redhead complained just a little about her constant backache.

The visit was brief, and Buffy went, as always, to make sure Liz got to her car. When she opened the door, she saw three vampires on the sidewalk across the street, and pulled Liz back inside. "Sorry," Buffy said as she closed the door.

Buffy pushed Liz back into the living room. "Have a seat," she told the confused midwife, and called Tara.

Tara rushed in, Faith and Giles on her heels. "There are three of them across the street," Buffy said, careful not to name the creatures.

Tara frowned. "They shouldn't be able to get that close."

"Well, they are." Buffy snapped, and apologized. "Sorry, don't mean to bark."

"Buffy, what's going on?" Liz asked.

"Vampires," Buffy sighed. "Lots of vampires. You're going to be here a while, so you may as well get comfortable."

Liz looked at Tara. "Is there anything I can do to help?"

"I d-don't know," Tara answered. After a few seconds, she asked, "Have you eaten?"

"Not yet."

"Come get some dinner, then. We're going to be very busy soon."

Everyone went back to the dining room, where Joyce, Anya, and Xander were still seated. Xander jumped up and went to get another chair. Faith went into the kitchen and came out with a plate, glass, utensils and napkin, which she squeezed in beside Tara's place.

After introductions, they finished dinner in silence, and Faith, Tara, and Anya cleared the table. Anya, surprisingly, didn't make a big deal of helping, and the job went smoothly.

Once the table was clear, Giles asked Xander to help him. They went to the living room and returned with the books.


	16. Chapter 16

"Faith, Buffy, and I met with some vampires recently," Giles began. "Between what they told us and what I have been able to glean, I believe we have found the cause of the vampire attacks."

"So spill all ready," Faith demanded.

"The vampires said that men were orchestrating the attacks. Specifically, British men." Giles paused for a moment. "For years, there have been rumors that the Council of Watchers will deal with demons if it suits their needs. In retrospect, it explains a great deal of history that is otherwise nonsensical. It appears that the Council is greatly displeased with both Buffy and Faith, and is attempting to kill them."

The table erupted, and Giles let them vent for a minute before attempting to re-establish order.

"I TOLD you," Buffy said angrily. She stood up, and pulled away from Willow. Buffy left the room. When they heard the front door open, Faith quickly went after her.

Buffy stood on the porch and stared at the vampires who were still across the street. One of them separated from the group and crossed the street as Faith opened the door. She recognized the demon, pulled the door closed, and stepped up beside Buffy.

"They are gathering now," the demon said from the sidewalk.

"Where are your fighters?" Buffy asked.

"Spread around this block. It's difficult to get close because of the spell."

"Good," Buffy snapped. She was still angry with Giles, and more angry at the Watcher's Council.

"Don't get involved until you're sure all of them have come through," Faith instructed, "and don't let any of them past you a second time."

The vampire nodded and backed away.

"B, you gotta come back inside," Faith said in a low voice. "We need to hear all of it, so we know what's going on."

"They're trying to kill us," Buffy growled.

"Why're you surprised? It's what they do," Faith answered. "If you don't fit their mold, it's easy enough to get another Slayer."

"Not that easy."

Faith grinned. "We aren't your basic, everyday Slayers. Now come back inside before Red comes out here."

The table was silent when they rejoined the group.

"May I continue?" Giles asked.

"In a minute," Buffy answered. "They're coming tonight, with everything they have. There are vampire fighters all around the block, and they're supposed to clean up anything that tries to escape." Buffy turned to Faith. "I want you upstairs with a crossbow. You, too, Xander, in the nursery. Giles, you guard the back door. I'll watch the front. Tara, if you know any spells, this is a good time to pull them out." She turned back to Giles. "Talk fast. It'll be full dark soon."

"That's all I know," Giles said. "The dreams are another matter completely."

"We'll worry about them later." Buffy stood up again. "I want you to call Travers and tell him to get his sorry butt here. I have a few things to discuss with him. Then Faith can have her say, and Will and Tara. Then you can tell him whatever you want." Buffy leaned down and kissed Willow's cheek. "Stay away from the windows," she said, and added in a lower tone, "I love you."

Willow looked at her, and after a second, nodded.

"Let's go, people," Buffy ordered.

Faith and Xander, with Anya trailing, headed upstairs. Giles stood up slowly and moved to the kitchen. Joyce started to get up, but Willow stopped her. "It's safer in here," she said simply, and Joyce retook her seat.

"Tara, is there anything else you can do to seal the house?" Willow asked.

"I don't know." Her brows came together as she thought.

"What have you done?" Liz asked.

Tara explained the spells. Liz nodded, and when Tara finished, said, "That's incredible. And it should work."

"It has so far," Willow told her, and grinned at Tara.

"I'm going to help Faith," Tara said, when it was obvious there was nothing else she could do.

Willow stood up and paced around the dining room while Joyce and Liz talked. Willow went into the living room, where Buffy watched the street through the small window in the door. "See anything?"

"Looks like shadows," Buffy answered. She turned from the door to look at Willow. "You shouldn't be here."

"I can't just sit in there and do nothing," Willow said.

"All right," Buffy acquiesced. "You can sit in here and do nothing."

Willow rolled her eyes. "I can shoot a crossbow. I know there's one in the weapons chest in the bedroom."

Buffy thought for a moment. "All right. But take Liz with you."

"Okay."

"And no magic."

"I know." Willow went back to the dining room. Liz was alone at the table. "Wanna have some fun?"

"Sure."

"C'mon." Willow gestured, and Liz got up and followed her. Buffy didn't say anything as they went by.

"What's going on?" Liz asked as they entered the front bedroom.

"Tons of vampires. Can you shoot a crossbow?"

"I don't think so."

"That's all right, I can." Willow went to the closet and rummaged through the weapons chest. She pulled out a small crossbow and put it on the floor. Then she brought out bolts. When she had all of them, Willow gathered them up and carried them and the crossbow to the window. She raised the window just enough fire through, then armed the crossbow.

"I know this is weird," Willow said, and picked off a vampire on the sidewalk.

"Apparently not to you."

"No, I'm used to it by now."

"How long?"

"How long what?" Willow aimed again, and hit another.

"How long have you been doing this?"

"Um, four years, I guess. Since high school. You know this is a hellmouth, right?"

"I do now." Liz paused for a second. "A lot of things make sense now."

Willow chuckled. "Welcome to my world."

"How can I help?"

"Just like this. Keep me company. Buffy gets all weird if I'm alone. Guess she thinks the boogey man is going to cart me off or something."

It took several hours for Willow to use most of the crossbow bolts. When she was down to two, she asked Liz to get Tara.

Tara came into the room and gave Willow a brief update. Then she raised the bolts from the ground and brought them back in through the window. Willow thanked her, and Tara left to check on Xander while Liz stared at her.

"Does she know how powerful she is?" Liz asked.

"Dunno." Willow shrugged. "I never asked. I just know she's good."

"What was all of that Mr. Giles was talking about?"

"Two things," Willow said while she reloaded the weapon. "First off, we've been having vampirepalooza once a week for a month or so. Tons of vampires show up, we kill them, things are quiet until the next attack. Now, it looks like the Watchers Council is behind it. They're like, Slayer overseers, right out of the 12th century." Willow stopped talking, took careful aim, and fired again. She started again while reloading. "Buffy kinda fired them, and since Faith is with us, they don't have a Slayer. Guess they figure they'll get a new one if they can get rid of one or both of them. Of course, Buffy all ready died once, so we don't know whether another Slayer will be called if she dies again. And the dream thing, Slayers have prophetic dreams, and Buffy's been having some, so we're trying to decipher them before the big bad comes to make life more difficult." Willow angled down, and dusted a vampire at the base of the tree outside the window.

"Way to go, Will!" came up the stairs.

Willow worked on reloading the crossbow. She turned to Liz. "Did I miss anything?"

"Is your life always this exciting?"

"Unfortunately, yes."

Vampires kept coming from every direction and were picked off by the shooters, sometimes two and three at a time as bolts passed through body after body. Tara came around periodically to recycle the used bolts, and Joyce passed through regularly with coffee and water. Liz traded places with Tara a couple times, but found Faith far less sociable than Willow.

By sunrise, everyone was exhausted. The immediate neighborhood looked like an incinerator had exploded. Ash was on everything, and each puff of wind swirled it around the yards.

Once they were sure the attack was over, the Scoobies reconvened around the dining room table. They traded notes briefly, and agreed to meet again that evening to continue the discussion. Anya and Xander left, with Giles and Liz on their heels. Joyce went upstairs to shower while Faith went to the basement to bathe and change. Tara went down to bed, and Buffy and Willow slowly climbed the stairs to their room.


	17. Chapter 17

Food arrived shortly after Joyce and Faith got home. Joyce and Tara were relieved that they didn't have to cook; Giles had arranged for catering, including cleanup, so they could concentrate on the trouble at hand. They began eating as soon as the meal was laid out, and Xander and Anya arrived within minutes.

There was no deep conversation while they ate, but when everyone was finished and the catering crew – two deeply bored young women – packaged leftovers and gathered their tools, the Scoobies surrounded the table and waited for Giles to begin.

He started with Buffy. "I called Quentin Travers. He, ah, declines to meet with us."

"He understands this means war, right?"

"I believe he doesn't care."

"That's on him. Hope the Council guys have good medical insurance," Buffy said matter of factly.

"We don't kill humans," Giles said firmly.

"Oh, I'm not going to kill them."

Willow, Joyce, and Giles all looked at Buffy with varying degrees of astonishment.

"What? They're allowed to wreak havoc and I'm not allowed to break an arm?" Buffy asked irritably.

"I'm with B," Faith spoke up. "If they were just messin' with us, we can take care of ourselves. You guys can't, and they need to get the message that we won't let 'em keep doin' whatever they want."

Giles looked from one Slayer to the other before speaking. "Do be careful," he told them finally.

"Rupert!"

"Joyce, they're going to do what they want with or without our approval," he answered her calmly.

"Mom, if you have any ideas, I'm open to them. But they don't want to talk, and they're not just messing with me and Faith. I don't care who they think they are, but nobody messes with my family and walks away without consequences."

"But, the police," Joyce began, and was cut off by the jumble of sarcastic laughs and comments from all of the young people.

When they stopped, Giles told Joyce, "They do have a point. At best, the police won't believe them. And we have bigger problems then the Council's fixation on Buffy and Faith."

"Told you!" Anya crowed.

"Yes, Anya, you were correct," Giles said crossly. "There is a prophecy, and it does involve the baby."

"I don't suppose it mentions kittens and happily ever after," Willow asked.

"No, it's the standard end of the world prophecy. Something called The Beast will use the child to open the doors between dimensions and the world will end."

"Over my dead body," Buffy and Faith said in unison. Tara and Willow looked at each other, then each Slayer in turn.

"I don't know anything more specific, so everyone must remain alert to odd occurrences."

"Which will be different from everyday how?" Xander asked.

"I don't know," Giles said. "But we always seem to notice them when they happen."

"What can we do to stop this Beast thing?" Joyce asked.

"I don't know yet. I would appreciate assistance with research whenever any of you have free time." Giles stood up and walked the few feet to the wall where the books he brought over the night before were stacked. He began handing volumes to Buffy, who was nearest to him. In a few moments, all of the books were on the table, with one in front of everyone but Buffy and Faith.

Buffy looked across the table to Faith. "Patrol?"

"On it." Faith stood up quickly.

Buffy leaned over to kiss Willow before leaving her seat. "We won't be long."

In the playground, they met the female vampire who acted as their contact. She rose from the swing when she saw the Slayers, and waited for them to approach.

"Nearly all our fighters were killed last night, but everyone that went against you is dead."

"Just vampires or what?" Faith asked.

"Everyone. Magic users, demons, humans."

"Thank you," Buffy said.

"I don't think that will end it." The vampire sounded tired.

"I have a friend in Los Angeles," Buffy said. "He can help you out. I'll call him if you want."

"I know Angelus," the vampire answered. "I haven't sunk that low yet."

"Okay," Buffy said slowly.

"Does the truce stand?"

Buffy and Faith looked at each other before Faith answered. "For now."

The vampire nodded. "There are four of us. You won't see the others unless something happens to me," she said. She turned and walked away, disappearing after half a minute into the night.

"This gets weirder all the time," Faith complained.

"It's about to get worse," Buffy said. "We need to go down in the sewers and see what's going on down there." She turned and began walking in the opposite direction from the vampire.

Faith was right behind her, and after two steps, caught up. "I wish you'd said something before. I just got these clean from the last time."

"Right," Buffy snorted. "Like you clean them yourself."

"I do," Faith insisted. "Blondie doesn't know shit about leather." She paused. "Except that I look damn good in it."

"So you've said," Buffy answered, and after that, they were quiet until they reached their destination, an undeveloped cul de sac beside one of Sunnydale's many cemeteries.

Together, they pried the manhole cover from the asphalt. Buffy climbed down first, and Faith followed her.

The sewer tunnels were large and dry. They took a few seconds to get their bearings before heading toward the center of town. They encountered nothing for the longest time, but as they neared Sunnydale central, both of them became increasingly uneasy.

The reason became apparent to them after they crossed the next large intersection. The way forward was blocked by recently installed metal bars, and neither needed to touch them to know that they carried a nasty charge, electrical, magical, or most likely, a mixture of both.

Behind the bars, they could see a dozen vampires and two men. They watched for several minutes, but nothing happened, so they backed away silently, and made for the nearest exit.

Once they were back above ground, they replaced the manhole cover and carefully noted where they were. Without talking, they jogged home.

The studying was in full swing when they returned. Buffy reported their conversation with the vampire and left Faith to tell what they had seen in the sewers. While Faith talked, Buffy went upstairs and returned with Willow's laptop. By the time she returned, Faith had gone downstairs to shower. Buffy connected the machine to the power and broadband outlets in the room, and excused herself to bathe.

She met Faith in the kitchen 20 minutes later. Faith was working her way through a plate of leftovers, and had one waiting for Buffy, who sat on the stool next to Faith. They ate without talking. Buffy took their plates and utensils to the sink and washed them while Faith fixed drinks for the Scoobies. She found the desserts in the refrigerator and doled out portions. She and Buffy each made two trips to carry everything to the other room before sitting at the table with the others, who had closed the books and pushed them to the center of the table.

"Find anything?" Faith asked.

"Not yet," Tara answered her.

"You need to go back down in the sewers so we can find out just how much space they've claimed and where they're getting in and out," Willow said.

"Yuck," Buffy said, and Faith made a face.

"C'mon," Xander said, "you know you love it down there. How could you not? The smells, the rats, the occasional demon."

"Ya know," Faith said thoughtfully, "there weren't any rats or bugs or anything down there."

"So?" Buffy asked.

"It's weird, is all."

"It's quite possible that the captive vampires have eaten them," Giles offered.

"Double yuck," Willow exclaimed. "Enough about rats and vampires," she said firmly, looking from Faith to Anya.

"Anybody from the Council talkin' to you?" Faith asked Giles.

"Not officially. Unofficially, a few old friends report dissension in the ranks."

"Maybe they'll overthrow Travers," Buffy said. She took a bite of her dessert, closed her eyes and moaned. "You've been holding out on us, Giles. This is delicious."

"A gentleman must keep a few secrets," he answered her primly.

"Chocolate is never on that list," Buffy said firmly, and focused on her plate.

They talked about nothing for nearly an hour before Anya and Xander left. Tara and Faith went downstairs shortly afterward, and Buffy and Joyce cleared the table. Joyce piled the dishes in the sink and put the kettle on. Buffy returned to the dining room, and she and Willow said goodnight to Giles before heading upstairs.

Giles went into the kitchen to find Joyce finishing preparations for tea. They sat at the kitchen table, and Joyce asked him the questions she didn't want the Scoobies to hear. Giles did his best to be honest without out frightening her, but they both knew that everything in their lives was dangerous. Conversation faded, and Giles finished his tea. Over Joyce's protest, he washed the sink full of dishes, plates, and forks before wishing her good night.

Everyone slept late on Saturday. Faith and Tara were first in the kitchen, even after spending half an hour talking before getting up. Buffy appeared next, with Willow a few minutes behind her. They ate cold cereal while Buffy and Faith discussed the best way to check out the sewers.

When the Slayers left, Tara went into the back yard. Willow followed, and they talked sporadically while Tara weeded the flowerbeds. Most of the ash was gone, but bits swirled in corners when the wind came up. Willow was uneasy, but didn't know why, and went back inside within an hour.

Tara continued to methodically weed the flowerbeds in the back. When she finished, she went into the kitchen to get a drink before heading out to the front yard. As she opened the front door, Buffy and Faith stepped onto the porch.

"Great timing," Faith smiled.

Tara got a whiff of them and stepped back. "Did you roll around in it?"

"No," Buffy said crossly and threw Faith a dirty look. "Someone made too much noise so we had to fight the guards."

"Hey," Faith protested. "It's not my fault they make those things uneven."

"At least take off your boots before you track through the house," Tara said.

Both Slayers rolled their eyes, but did as Tara instructed. They headed for the bathrooms, and Tara went to the kitchen. She knew they would be hungry, and while Buffy and Faith showered, she mixed a huge bowl of tuna salad, then prepared onions, lettuce, and tomatoes for sandwiches.

Faith appeared in the kitchen first, and kissed Tara on the cheek before beginning to prepare a pile of sandwiches. Joyce appeared next, and bypassed the tuna in favor of coffee, which she took into the living room. Buffy came downstairs with her dirty clothes wrapped in her wet towel. She went downstairs and started the washer. Faith had left her filthy clothing on the floor in front of the washer, and Buffy added them to the load. Then she went upstairs to get something to eat.

"Where's Willow?" Tara asked.

"Research," Buffy answered succinctly. She skipped bread and laid a layer of lettuce and tomatoes on her plate before adding two generous scoops of tuna.

"So what did you find?" Tara asked while fixing herself a sandwich.

"Vampires," Faith said, and started on her second sandwich. "An' oo eyes."

"And an eye?" Tara asked.

Buffy snorted before translating. "And two guys."

"Guards?" Tara asked.

"Yup. Giles has 'em now." Faith answered.

"Buffy, you didn't…" Tara trailed off.

"Not this time." Buffy lifted a forkful of tuna. After swallowing, she told Tara, "Thanks for fixing this. It hits the spot."

"You're welcome."

"I'll take some up to Will when I'm finished."

"Good idea."

"You two going out tonight?" Buffy asked.

"Nah," Faith answered. "We need to patrol. If it isn't too late when we get back, we might go to the Bronze."

"Have fun."

"You wanna come?"

"No, I don't think Will's up to it. She's not feeling too good."

"Anything I can do?" Tara asked.

"I doubt it," Buffy said with a sigh. "It's the baby."


	18. Chapter 18

Willow frowned as she read the screen. She had been following links for hours, each bringing her incrementally closer to her goal and a blinding headache. Her back ached, despite regular stretches, and the baby had been kicking and punching like Buffy in the middle of a vampire ambush.

She couldn't remember how she reached this site, and automatically bookmarked it before getting too deep into it. Halfway down the screen, she saw the first reference to "The Beast," and continued to scroll through to the end of the page. Willow paged up to the beginning of the page and read again. It sounded fantastical even to her Hellmouth-jaded ears. Knights who sought to destroy the Beast and all who surrounded her, a mystical Key sought by both parties, and a most horrible end to the world should the Knights (who say Ni, her brain added with a giggle) fail.

Willow pushed away from the desk and stood up. She rubbed her back tiredly and trudged to the bathroom for the third time that hour. 'I'll be glad when you get here,' she thought while pulling the door closed.

Buffy was waiting when she came out. "I brought you a sandwich," Buffy offered.

"Thanks." Willow sat on the bed. Buffy helped her scoot back before handing her the plate and settling near her.

"Find anything?"

"Not sure." Willow took a bite of the sandwich. Buffy realized she hadn't brought a drink, then saw a glass on the desk near the laptop and hopped up to bring it to Willow. She held it, waiting for Willow to ask, her other hand resting on Willow's belly. Every time the baby pushed against her hand, Buffy smiled goofily.

When Willow finished eating, Buffy put her plate and glass aside, and moved behind Willow. She worked on the small of her back, encouraged to continue by Willow's happy hum and forward lean. The phone rang, and she let it go in favor of working her way up Willow's back. Buffy's strong fingers relaxed Willow's shoulders and neck before moving down her arms. Willow leaned back against her, and they sat with each other, Buffy's hands over Willow's on her stomach, Buffy's lips leaving random caresses on Willow's neck and cheek.

They looked up at the knock that interrupted them. Faith stood in the doorway. "That was Giles. He wants to see all of us ASAP."

"We'll be there in a minute," Buffy answered for both of them. Faith went away, but neither of them moved. Buffy heard Tara and Faith moving around downstairs and sighed. "Duty calls."

"All right." Willow pushed herself toward the edge of the bed. She grunted and got to her feet, then walked to the bathroom, grumbling under her breath.

Half an hour later, Giles' dining room was full. Two large young men were securely tied to chairs. They were sullen and silent, and more than a little embarrassed at being defeated by two teenage girls and a middle-aged Watcher. Buffy, Faith, Tara, and Willow were arrayed around the table while Giles paced angrily.

He stopped behind the men, tapped one on the shoulder, and barked, "Tell them." When he didn't begin speaking, Giles twisted his ear viciously. "Tell them," he repeated.

"The Council sent us," he mumbled. Giles twisted his ear again, he made a noise. "We're supposed to kill you. But it's supposed to look like a vampire attack." He didn't raise his eyes from his lap.

"Why?" Giles snapped.

"So the Council can take over the Hellmouth."

"What?" Buffy and Faith exclaimed together.

"Travers believes he can control the Hellmouth," Giles said.

"That sounds like a phenomenally bad idea," Tara said.

"That's an understatement," Willow said wryly.

"Tell them all of it, or you won't be able to use either hand," Giles said icily.

"But," the second one protested, and squeaked when Giles swiftly grasped and bent his pinky finger back until it was parallel to his hand. "Travers wants to get rid of all the Slayers and deal with the demons," he said in a rush.

"All of the Slayers?" Willow asked.

"There's never been just one. They told you that to coerce you into doing their bidding," Giles said calmly. "There are half a dozen active across the planet at any time. Tell them the rest."

"He wants the child. To bargain with."

"Enough," Buffy snapped. She got up and began pacing. "How many of you are there and where are they?"

"Two others in Sunnydale, at the Hilton, room 112." Giles said. "Two more in Los Angeles, keeping an eye on Angel."

Faith got up immediately. "On it."

"You'll need this." Giles flipped a key card in her direction and Faith pulled it from mid-air. "I called Angel. His team will take care of the others."

Faith nodded and left. Giles turned back to the women. "These fine gentlemen have called Quentin Travers to report a problem. Mr. Travers will arrive at 4 a.m. local time."

Buffy's smile was far from friendly. She turned to Tara. "Put them to sleep so we won't have to worry about them."

Tara looked from Buffy to Giles to the men. Finally she nodded and said a few words, and their heads dropped.

"Thank you," Buffy said, her tone gentler. To Giles, she said, "I think we need to find our 'friends' and have a chat. Travers should have a greeting party, don't you think?"

Giles smiled grimly. "Just what I was thinking," he answered.

Buffy turned to Willow and bent down to her. "I need you to go home."

Willow thought about protesting, then thought better. "Be careful," she said, and kissed Buffy's cheek. Buffy turned and caught her lips for a long caress before helping Willow to her feet. Tara stood automatically, and Buffy turned to her. "Make sure they're safe, and come back here. I think we'll need your help."

"Are you sure this is the best thing to do?" Tara asked cautiously.

"If you have a better idea," Buffy started, and Tara shook her head.

Tara and Willow walked back to Revello Drive as quickly as they could. Tara hurried upstairs and gathered a few things she thought might be useful. Willow stopped her before Tara slipped out the door. "I know they won't think of it, so you please check in every few hours?" Willow asked.

"Sh-sure," Tara answered.

"Thanks."

Tara smiled and left. Willow went upstairs to research. She hoped it would distract her, but between worrying about Buffy and her persistent backache, she wasn't sure it would work. Before going to her room, she tapped lightly on Joyce's door. When she didn't get an answer, she opened it just enough to peek at the bed. It was empty, and Willow went to the nursery. It was empty, too, but out the windows, she saw Joyce relaxing in the yard. After yet another bathroom stop, she returned to the computer.

True to her word, Tara called three hours later. "We're going to be a while," she told Willow.

"What's a while?"

"Probably all night," Tara admitted. "Buffy was gone when I got back, but she and Faith came back with the other two Council guys not too long ago, and then they went out again."

"They haven't been here," Willow said. She rubbed her lower back. "I'll let Joyce know it's just us tonight."

"I'll call again later."

"Thanks, Tara."

Willow was surprised when Tara and the Slayers returned home just before 11 p.m. Buffy closed the door when she entered their room.

"You all right?" Willow asked. She pushed herself up.

"Tired," Buffy answered. She wrapped her arms around Willow and kissed her cheek.

"What's going on?"

Buffy led them toward the bed. "Nothing right now. The Council guys are locked up in the sewers. Travers will be here later tonight, and he'll be greeted by some very angry vampires."

"You sure that's a good idea?" Willow asked while lowering herself to the bed.

"Turnaround's fair play. How are you feeling?" Buffy changed the subject while they got themselves settled.

"Tired," Willow admitted. "I just want her to get here."

Buffy smiled and rubbed her stomach. "Soon," she said.

"I know," Willow sighed.

"Look on the bright side, Will, you'll be able to go back to school in September."

"You mean we'll be able to go back to school."

"Yup," Buffy agreed, and yawned. "Love you," she murmured, and slipped into sleep.

* * *

"Two wrongs don't make a right," Tara insisted.

"I didn't say they did," Faith protested.

"That's how you're acting, like doing something to them is fair."

Faith set her boots aside and sighed. She sat on the bed before answering Tara. "Nothing's fair about any of it. I didn't ask to be a slayer. B didn't ask for it. But we are. Do you know what they did to B? What they'd do to me if they could get me?" Faith stood up and began to pace. "The Council's idea of a test is to drug you out of your powers and turn a psycho vampire loose on you. Happy freakin' birthday, huh? I don't see any other way. If we don't stop them, they'll kill us." She stopped in front of Tara. "And I'm not ready to die. You ready for me to die?"

"No."

"Those are the options, our lives or theirs." Faith reached between them and pushed Tara's hair off her face. She lowered her hand to Tara's shoulder.

Tara stepped to close the space between them. "I don't like it," she said softly, "but I like the alternatives less." She kissed Faith, and for the next few minutes, they stood near their bed, kissing, until Faith pulled away and tried to suppress a yawn.

Tara smiled, and let go, and they got into their sleep clothes. Faith turned out the light before climbing into bed and pulling Tara close.


	19. Chapter 19

Willow woke with a start. The pain was sharp and unexpected, and it took her breath for a few seconds. She poked Buffy, who grunted, "What?"

"Ow!"

Buffy sat up immediately and groped for Willow's hand. "What's wrong?"

"Ow!" Willow repeated, then drew in a long breath. "She's coming."

"I'll call Liz." Buffy swung her feet onto the floor and peered at the phone.

"Ow, damn it!" Willow rolled to her feet. She walked slowly to the bathroom while Buffy punched the keys.

By the time Buffy hung up the phone and came to the bathroom, Willow was ready to scream. Buffy grabbed towels with one hand, with the other, helped Willow back to the bedroom. She threw the towels down and helped Willow sit on some of them.

Willow laid back and pulled herself further into the bed. "This really hurts," she complained to Buffy.

"Breathe," Buffy ordered, and Willow tried to comply.

"She's coming now," Willow said, and tried unsuccessfully to suppress a scream.

"Will?" Buffy asked, her voice tight with panic. She pushed Willow's nightshirt up, and between her legs, saw the top of the baby's head. Buffy drew a deep breath and looked at Willow. "Push."

"I am," Willow said. She panted for a few seconds, then groaned. She pushed with everything she had, screaming with the effort and the pain.

Buffy caught the baby, and grabbed up one of the towels. She wiped her face first, hands shaking, before pushing Willow's nightshirt aside and placing her on Willow's chest.

Willow looked from one face to the other, oblivious to all but the three of them. She kissed Buffy's cheek, and when she turned, her lips. They exchanged "I love yous" before Buffy turned to their audience. "Little help?" she asked.

Liz took over, sending Tara and Faith for towels, hot and warm water, string, and scissors. After Buffy cut her daughter's umbilical cord, and after Willow delivered the placenta, and after both she and the baby were clean and comfortable, and after the baby nursed herself to sleep, everyone finally left them alone.

Willow, exhausted, rested in Buffy's arms. Buffy was mostly still. She kissed Willow's head frequently, and touched the baby tentatively. 'Dawn,' Buffy corrected herself mentally, and Willow settled a little more against her. Buffy had only begun to drowse when Dawn began to fuss, and she reluctantly woke Willow. Willow changed the baby to her other breast and adjusted her head on Buffy's shoulder. Dawn quieted immediately, and Buffy slid into the most restful sleep she'd had in months.

Downstairs, Joyce, Tara, and Faith sat in the living room with coffee. It was too early to get up and too late to go back to bed, and none of them wanted to share anything of what they had witnessed. They sat in companionable silence as the time passed.

Shortly after sunrise, Buffy came downstairs. She sat on the couch beside Joyce, drew up her feet and laid her head on her mother's shoulder. Faith grinned at her, and Buffy stuck out her tongue. Tara giggled at both of them. "Girls," Joyce warned.

Buffy smiled sweetly and leaned a little more into her mother. "I'm glad you're here," she said quietly.

Joyce put her arm around her daughter. "I am, too."

"She's beautiful, isn't she?"

"Definitely." Joyce smiled. "The child born on the Sabbath day is bonny and blithe, and good and gay," she recited, a memory from long ago.

Buffy smiled and bussed her mother's cheek. She uncurled herself, stood and stretched. "Willow's going to be thirsty, and they're both starting to wake up," she said, and went into the kitchen.

The next time she passed through the living room, she had water bottles and yogurt. Buffy paused at the foot of the stairs. "Get me half an hour before we have to go to Giles'," she said to Faith.

"Will do," Faith answered.

"When is that?" Joyce asked.

"Eleven," Tara answered.

"Then you both should get some rest." Joyce stood. "I'll call you at 9:30 so you have time to eat."

"Thanks, Mrs. S," Faith said, and stretched before getting up. Tara was a few seconds behind her.

Faith rapped lightly on the door, and receiving no response, opened it enough to see the bed. Buffy's back was to the door. She was propped up on her elbow. The other hand stroked Dawn's head, and Faith was surprised to see that hand shaking ever so slightly.

"B," Faith called quietly.

"Yeah?"

"We need to get going soon. Your mom made some breakfast, if you're hungry."

"I'll be down in a few."

"K," Faith said, and closed the door.

"Where are you going?" Willow asked.

"To have a chat with Quentin Travers."

"I thought you sent vampires after him."

"Just to bring him to us." Buffy sounded a little hurt.

Willow digested that information and nodded. "Be careful, please."

"I will," Buffy promised. She leaned over and kissed Willow, then Dawn. "I love you, and I'll be back as soon as I can."

Downstairs, Faith paced. Tara's eyes followed her. After half a dozen trips across the living room, Joyce said, "Faith, please sit down."

Faith lowered herself beside Tara, who rested a hand on Faith's black denim clad thigh. Faith covered Tara's hand and tried to sit still. After a few minutes, Buffy came downstairs, and she and Joyce went to the kitchen.

Once they were gone, Tara asked, "What's going on?"

"I'm just nervous."

"About this thing with the Council?"

"Yeah." Faith began tapping one foot.

"It'll be fine," Tara said, but Faith continued to fidget. "What is it really?" Tara asked.

"That's it," Faith insisted.

"Come on, then," Tara said, getting to her feet. She pulled Faith up, through the dining room and kitchen into the back yard. They sat in a sunny patch, and began the now-familiar routine of morning meditation.

Tara found it difficult to get into sync with Faith. Her concentration fluctuated wildly, and Tara caught snatches of Faith's emotions, but not enough of anything to reach a conclusion. As they continued, Faith settled down a little, but it was obvious to Tara that she was relieved when they finished.

Faith scrambled to her feet. She helped Tara up, and they went back into the house. Buffy was talking with her mother, and gave her a peck on the cheek when she saw Faith. "Ready?" Buffy asked.

Faith nodded. They left without acknowledging, "Be careful," in stereo from Tara and Joyce.

Once the Slayers were gone, Joyce and Tara went upstairs. Willow waved them into the room. Joyce sat on the bed. Tara stood nearby. Willow transferred Dawn to her grandmother's arms, and rolled out of bed.

"Tara, there's a camera on my dresser," Joyce said.

Tara waited to be certain Willow wouldn't need help, then went across the hall. She returned with the camera and snapped a few pictures of Joyce and Dawn, and a few close-ups of Dawn's face. When Willow returned, Tara added a few of the three of them together.

That done, Tara sat on the bed and held Dawn for the first time. She looked carefully at the baby, and a small "oh" slipped out of her mouth.

Willow frowned. "Oh, what?"

The doorbell rang. Tara returned Dawn to Willow. "I'll tell you later," she promised, and went to answer the door.

She returned with Liz, who had a small, gift wrapped box as well as her usual bag. "Hi," she said cheerily. "Just checking in."

Joyce and Tara left; Willow heard their footsteps on the stairs as Liz closed the door.

"How are you feeling?" Liz asked.

"Sore, mostly."

"That's good. How's the baby? Is she nursing?"

"All the time, except when she's sleeping."

"Good." Liz sat on the bed beside Willow. "Can I see her?"

Willow handed Dawn over and watched Liz check her. "Wow, she's grown all ready."

"I was wondering," Willow said.

"Let me take a look at you," Liz said, and laid Dawn beside Willow. She checked Willow's genitals and breasts, and pulled Willow's nightshirt down before getting to her feet. "Everything looks great. You should keep taking the vitamins while she's nursing. I don't think that will be long, though," Liz said thoughtfully.

Willow sat up. "What do you mean?"

"She's growing as fast now as she was before she was born."

Willow closed her eyes. "I was afraid of that," she said.

"Don't worry about it too much," Liz said. She remembered the gift box and presented it to Willow.

"Thanks," Willow said automatically. She opened the package, and smiled at Liz when she saw what it contained. "Thanks so much." She pulled the tiny bracelet from the package. It was silver, with crosses and pentagrams alternating.

"I figured it's never too soon around here."

"That's true. Is it safe for her to wear?"

"Yeah. Just keep an eye on it since she's growing so fast. I got extra links for her. They're in the bottom."

"Thank you. For everything. I can't imagine how we would have done this without your help." Willow slipped the bracelet on Dawn's left wrist.

Liz smiled. "You're welcome. Where's Buffy? I thought she'd be here with you two."

"Slayer stuff."

"Ah. Guess I'll see her later then." Liz stood up. "I'll stop by tomorrow about this time if that's all right."

"Great. Thanks again."

"See you."

Liz left the door open. She stopped downstairs to chat with Joyce and Tara before leaving, and they came back upstairs. Willow decided to go downstairs with them, and they slowly and carefully went down the stairs, Tara first, then Willow and Joyce. They settled themselves in the living room, Joyce holding Dawn, and Willow remembered Tara's earlier reaction to holding Dawn.

"What was the 'oh' about before?" Willow asked.

"Hmm? Oh, just that her aura is so strong. It's rare, but not unheard of." Tara smiled at Dawn, who clutched her finger. "It surprised me." Tara looked at Willow. "In a good way," she stressed.

* * *

Monday's child is fair of face,Tuesday's child is full of grace,Wednesday's child is full of woe,Thursday's child has far to go,Friday's child is loving and giving,Saturday's child works hard for a living,But the child who is born on the Sabbath Day  
Is bonny and blithe and good and gay.  
If you want to know this poem's origins, go to .org/wiki/Monday%27s_Child 


	20. Chapter 20

They entered the sewers through a crypt. Buffy went first, and waited for Giles and Faith to come down. The Slayers were careful to keep Giles between them, even though they didn't expect any problems.

Buffy unlocked the gate, and Faith locked it. They did this once more before reaching the Master's lair, where all the Council employees sat sullenly under the watchful gaze of a dozen vampires.

Quentin Travers got to his feet when he saw them. "Giles, you better have a good excuse for this."

"Sit down," Buffy said evenly. "And be quiet."

"Mind your tongue, young lady," Travers commanded.

Faith stepped forward and pushed him down. He grabbed for her, and found himself in front of her, his arm twisted painfully behind his back. "We can talk like this," she told him. "It's all the same to us."

Travers was silent, and Faith let him go. She rejoined Giles and Buffy and smirked at Travers.

"You are nothing but a bully," Giles said with disgust.

Buffy ignored the exchange. "Your lackeys told us the most interesting things, Quentin. Of course, we verified them. And guess what? You're out of work." Buffy smiled.

"That's absurd." Travers jumped up again.

This time, it was Giles who stepped forward. "My Slayer is talking," he said firmly, and shoved Travers. "You are listening. If you interrupt her again, you'll be quite sorry."

Travers glared at Giles, but held his tongue, and Giles returned to his place between Buffy and Faith.

"The new Chief Watcher is sending some people to pick you up. I've been assured that you won't be torturing any more girls. Or anyone else. They have a lovely place for you. Until they arrive, you'll be staying here. Don't try to leave. All sorts of terrible things happen to people in the sewers." Buffy turned to her companions. "Did I forget anything?"

Giles smiled coldly. "Just details," he told her. "I think Faith should have her say first."

"I got nothin'," Faith said.

"Very well. I have a few things to say. You, sir," Giles spat, "are a coward and a liar. You twisted and perverted everything to suit your petty schemes. How many girls did you have murdered because they wouldn't act the way you thought they should?"

"You don't know anything," Travers snarled.

"I know that you'll be very unhappy for a very long time," Giles smiled. He nodded to Buffy.

She looked at Travers for several seconds, and burst into laughter. Giles and Faith both turned to look at her. When she recovered, Buffy said, "He reminds me of Snyder. A nasty little man who picks on those who can't fight back." She took a step toward Travers. "I can fight back, and I will. I died once doing your dirty work, and I'm not afraid of that. Since that's the only threat you have," Buffy shrugged, "I'm not worried. But if I ever think you're around, or someone you sent, you'll be looking over your shoulder for the remainder of your miserable life." She turned her back on him, and he jumped her.

Faith and Giles both moved to separate them before Buffy did something she would regret. Faith held Buffy down while Giles shoved Travers as far away as he could. When Faith saw him land, she let Buffy up, but kept a tight grip on her arm.

"Let's go," Faith urged, and everyone but Travers and his six helpers left. They were careful to lock the gates behind them, and the vampires fanned out to guard every possible exit.

Giles followed the Slayers out of the sewers. Their familiarity with them was a little unnerving to him, but he kept that to himself, and sighed in relief when they climbed a ladder into the same crypt they had left 90 minutes before.

Buffy tossed the keys toward Faith, who caught them easily. "See you at home," she said, and took off toward at a steady lope.

Faith passed the keys to Giles. "You want me wait with you, or do you wanna call when they get here?"

"I'll call you. They weren't certain when they would arrive."

Faith nodded. "You need anything else from me now?"

"No. Go do whatever it is you do." Giles paused. "I didn't mean that how it sounded."

"It's cool. I just wanna see the baby."

"Baby?"

"Willow had the baby last night. Didn't we tell you?"

"No," Giles said.

"Guess we forgot. Sorry. C'mon back to the house so you can meet her."

"Faith, she's an infant."

"A really cute one," Faith told him. "C'mon, you know Red wants you to see her."

"All right," Giles sighed, and he and Faith set out for Revello Drive.

When they arrived, Faith told Giles, "Blondie will have a fit if we track sewer mud through the house," and made him remove his shoes. In the living room, they found Buffy and Willow, both recently showered, and Dawn, sleeping on Buffy.

The noise in the kitchen stopped for a few seconds when Faith entered, and Joyce appeared in the living room seconds later. "Rupert," she greeted him warmly. "You're just in time for lunch. Would you like some tea?"

"That would be lovely, thank you."

Buffy shifted Dawn to her arms and displayed her for Giles. "You can hold her next time," she said.

"Unless you just came from the sewers," Willow added.

Giles nodded before addressing Willow. "She's beautiful. How are you?"

"Good."

He smiled at her and removed his jacket. He hung it on the doorknob, and excused himself to the kitchen.

Lunch was quiet, and Giles left quickly afterward. The women sat in the living room, and Joyce said, "I need to tell you all something."

Buffy turned immediately to her mother. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing's wrong, honey. Nothing serious, anyway," Joyce hedged. "I need to go to the hospital for a few days."

"Why?" Buffy demanded.

"The doctor wants to check a few things."

"I thought you were doing better."

"I am," Joyce reassured them. "He's just being careful."

"When?" Tara asked.

"Tuesday," Joyce said with a sigh.

"Mom, why did you wait so long to tell us?"

"I didn't want you to worry. I'm telling you now so we can make sure everything gets taken care of."

Buffy frowned. "What things?"

"Nothing major, except the gallery." Joyce turned to Faith. "Think you can handle it for a week?"

"I'll do my best," Faith told her.

"I'll help," Tara offered.

"Thank you, girls. Buffy, all the bills are paid, but there are a couple things I need to discuss with you privately."

Buffy frowned, but gave Dawn to Willow. She stood up and waited for her mother, who took them upstairs.

Dawn began to fuss, and Willow checked her diaper. She made a face, and Faith volunteered to change her. Willow was reluctant, but let Faith take Dawn. She watched, stunned, as Faith competently removed the old diaper, cleaned and powdered Dawn, and put a fresh diaper on her. Faith got her back into her sleeper, and returned Dawn to her mother.

"Thank you," Willow said, her surprise still obvious.

"No big. You need anything before B comes down, just yell. I'll be doin' the dishes." Faith picked up the dirty diaper and carried it away.

Willow turned to Tara. "Did you know she could do that?"

Tara laughed. "It's not difficult, Willow."

"But it's, it's," Willow sputtered before falling silent.

Joyce and Buffy stood in front of Joyce's dresser. Joyce pushed a few things aside to make room for the papers she wanted Buffy to see. "I don't think we'll need any of this, but better safe than sorry," Joyce began, and the parade of paperwork began before Buffy could protest.

Insurance policies, deeds to the house and gallery, mortgages, power of attorney from mother to daughter, and finally, the will, were reviewed and explained, and Buffy took it all in, repeating "don't panic" silently the whole time. When her mother was done, Buffy hugged her tightly. "You are not allowed to die. Are we clear?"

"Crystal." Joyce hugged Buffy. "I don't think we'll need any of this. I just want you to know about it." She pulled back and waited for Buffy to look at her. "I love you, Buffy, and I'm proud of you."

"Mom, you're scaring me."

Joyce smiled. "All right, I'll stop." She released Buffy, who backed up half a step. "Let's go spoil my granddaughter."

When the phone rang an hour later, Faith jumped up to answer it. She didn't say much before hanging up. She returned to the living room and reported to Buffy, "The Council guys are here. Giles said they wanna talk to us."

Buffy sighed. She didn't want to leave Willow and Dawn for a second time that day, especially to be talked at by stuffy, tweedy Watchers and go down in the sewers.

"I'll tell 'em you're busy," Faith offered.

"No, they won't leave us alone until they get what they want. Let's just get it over with." Buffy leaned over and kissed Willow's cheek, then stood up. She went to her mother, leaned down and kissed her daughter. "Be back soon."


	21. Chapter 21

Faith knocked before opening Giles' door. She and Buffy stood in the doorway, stunned at the number of people crammed into the room.

"Close the door," Giles said crossly.

Faith closed the door and she and Buffy went to Giles. "You didn't tell us you were having a party," Buffy said quietly.

"And it's all for you," he answered snidely. For the past two hours, he had been answering questions and getting few answers in return. The interrogation, following his trip into the sewers, had frayed his nerves as well as his manners.

One of the suits approached them, and looked them up and down for a few seconds before speaking. "I suppose you'll do," he said.

"So glad you approve," Faith answered in a saccharine tone.

"We have much work to do," he continued.

"Don't hurt yourself," Faith answered, and Giles poked her in the back.

Unfazed, the man continued. "The recovery team has been waiting for you."

"You don't need both of us to show you where the rats are," Faith said.

"You will lead the team to Mr. Travers," he went on. "We will talk when you get back."

Faith looked from Buffy to Giles.

"Go on, I'll be ok," Buffy said softly.

"You sure?" Faith asked, and Buffy nodded. Faith turned to Giles and held out her hand. He put the keyring in her palm. "Don't antagonize them," Giles said softly but firmly.

"Gotcha," Faith said. She turned to the assembled group. "We got wheels or what?"

"The van is outside."

"Let's go," she said, and headed for the door. Everyone but the man who had spoken earlier followed Faith.

"Shall we get acquainted, Ms. Summers?"

"Your name would be a good start." Buffy crossed her arms over her chest.

"Philip Cable Westrope." He offered his hand, but Buffy ignored it. "Shall we sit, then?"

Buffy sighed and went to a chair around Giles' table. Giles took the seat nearest her, and Westrope sat opposite her.

"Your record as Slayer is most impressive," he said.

Buffy shrugged. She wanted him to get to the point so she could check on Faith and get home to her family.

"You will, of course, continue in your current capacity. Ms. Spencer is needed elsewhere."

"Ms. Spencer," Buffy said icily, "is needed right here."

"Why, pray tell?"

Buffy looked at Giles, and he nodded. "Something big is coming. We're having dreams about it. Different dreams about the same things."

"The Beast," Westrope responded calmly.

"You know so much, how about sharing a little?"

"Our research teams are hard at work. When we have something useful, we will share it with you," he said.

Giles knew Buffy would answer sarcastically, and jumped in. "We would appreciate it. We haven't found much yet."

"Ms. Summers, given your track record, we believe you can handle The Beast on your own."

"Faith is staying," Buffy said stubbornly.

"You do not make that decision."

"No, I don't," Buffy agreed. "But neither do you." She leaned toward Westrope and fixed him with her best Slayer stare.

He folded sooner than either Giles or Buffy expected. "Very well. Ms. Spencer may stay for now."

"I'm glad that's settled. If you have anything else, work it out with Giles." She stood up and looked at her Watcher. "Come for dinner," she ordered him, and he nodded. Buffy left quickly, restraining herself from slamming the door.

She trotted to the cemetery. A black panel van with dark windows was parked near the crypt, and two of the men from the apartment stood near it. Buffy stayed out of sight and watched. It wasn't long before two more of the men from the apartment emerged with two of Travers' flunkies chained between them.

Buffy waited, watching as Travers' remaining underlings were brought out. Travers was brought up last, with two men holding him tightly. His lips were moving a mile a minute, and Buffy snickered. When the van was loaded, the two guards got into the front and it left.

Faith appeared a few minutes later. She pushed the crypt door closed before walking toward Buffy. "All done," she reported.

"Good. I left Giles with the head tweedy guy. He'll be by later to fill us in."

"Cool. Let's get home, then. I'm tired of smellin' like the sewer. Next time, let's use someplace above ground."

"Let's just skip the whole next time thing."

"Deal," Faith agreed. After a few seconds, she asked, "You all right with your mom?"

"No, but I don't have a choice, do I?"

"Guess not."

"Sorry, the whole thing just weirds me out. I mean, Will just had the baby last night, and now Mom's going to the hospital," Buffy burst out. "I hate the hospital," she added emphatically.

"I think everything's gonna be ok," Faith said. "I mean, Mrs. S was in one of those freaky dreams I had, and none of that stuff has happened yet, so…" she trailed off.

"Thanks."

"No big."

Tara held dinner as long as she could while they waited for Giles. He showed up when they were halfway through, and slid into his seat at the table, apologizing.

Buffy waited until he finished eating to begin asking questions. Giles had few answers. He had been reinstated as official Watcher to both Slayers. Westrope had been full of questions about them, and Giles had answered only those having to do with their Slayer duties. Then he handed an envelope each to Buffy and Faith.

"What's this?" Faith asked suspiciously.

"I don't know," Giles said. "Mr. Westrope asked me to give them to you with his thanks."

Buffy waited while Faith cautiously opened her envelope. Faith's eyes widened, and she whispered, "Holy shit."

Tara leaned over to see what Faith was holding, and her eyes grew wide, too.

Buffy's curiosity got the better of her, and she hurriedly opened her envelope. She didn't say anything, just passed it to Willow, who stared in silent shock.

Finally, Faith asked, "Is this real?"

"We'll know for certain in a few days, but I have no reason to doubt him so far."

"Wow," Buffy said, and nudged Willow. "Show Mom."

First Willow, then Faith passed the envelopes to Joyce. "It's about time," was her response before returning them.

Dawn began to fuss, and Buffy got up. She returned with the baby, and sat beside Willow again. She remembered her earlier conversation with Giles and asked, "Want to hold her?"

He looked briefly uncomfortable, but said, "Yes."

Buffy got up again, and walked around to Giles. She laid the baby gently in his arms and said to Dawn, "This is Giles."

Giles examined the baby for a few seconds, and Dawn looked back at him with a serious expression. "Hello," he said tentatively, and Dawn howled. Sputtering, he held her toward Buffy, and the others burst into laughter.

Buffy took Dawn from him. "Don't worry," she comforted her daughter, "I did the same thing when I met him. You'll get used to him."

Willow got up before Buffy could sit. "She's probably hungry."

"Living room?" Buffy suggested, and turned before Willow could agree.

Faith and Tara got up and began clearing the table, and when the left the room, Giles moved to a seat closer to Joyce. "Have they told you anything that's happened?"

"Not yet." Joyce stacked the plates she could reach.

"There is a new leader for the Watchers Council. He was here earlier, and I imagine we'll be hearing from him again shortly. Quentin Travers and his followers have been purged from the Council. Travers himself has been returned to England to face the consequences of his actions."

"They didn't kill him?" Joyce asked.

"Apart from a few bruises, they didn't harm him," Giles answered calmly, leaving out his part in obtaining information from the men Buffy and Faith had brought to him.

Joyce sighed in relief. "I was worried they would do something they would regret later."

"They were remarkably level headed," he said, and paused when Faith and Tara returned to finish clearing the table. Once they were gone, he continued. "Philip Westrope, the new head of the Council, wishes Faith to become guardian of the Cleveland hellmouth. Buffy refuses to allow Faith to leave, and the Council have temporarily acquiesced."

"There won't be any more of those barbaric tests, will there?"

"Not if I have anything to say about it," he said firmly.

Joyce nodded. "I'm trusting you to take care of them."

Giles looked confused.

"They haven't told you?"

"Told me what?"

Joyce sighed. "I'm going into the hospital on Tuesday. Hopefully, it will just be for a few days, and everything will get back to normal."

"I wish you all the best," Giles said stiffly.

"Rupert, I'm sure everything will be fine."

"I hope it will. If you need anything, please let me know."

"I could use a ride. I'm expected there Tuesday morning, and I want to leave the Jeep for the girls to use."

"I'll be here," Giles told her.


	22. Chapter 22

On Monday morning, Tara and Faith went to the gallery with Joyce. They spent most of the morning going over everything the younger women would need to know. After that, Joyce sent them out to the bank and to have lunch.

Faith skipped the teller lines and found someone at a desk. "I wanna open an account."

The young woman, Melissa Brown, according to her desk sign, looked up from her computer. "Certainly. Have a seat."

Faith insisted that Tara be on the account, and they filled out the paperwork. Everything was obviously routine until Faith handed her the cashier's check. The bank employee looked closely at the check, then at Faith. "Ms. Spencer, are you certain you want to put all of this in a checking account? You have many options available."

"Like what?"

Faith's eyes glazed over while the woman listed her choices. When she stopped, Faith was completely confused. "Look, let's just do this for now, all right? You can give me some stuff to read about the rest of it."

"May I suggest that you put 75 percent into a savings account?"

"Sure, whatever. I just want some walkin' around money."

"I'll be right back," Ms. Brown promised.

Faith turned to Tara. "This stuff makes my head hurt."

"I'll help you with it."

"Nah, you can just do whatever. I don't care. That's why I'm puttin' your name on it, too."

"Faith, it's your money. You earned it."

Faith snorted. "I figure it's a bribe, so I'll be a good little Slayer and do what they want."

"Either way," Tara said, "it's yours."

"Ours."

"Faith," Tara began.

Faith cut her off. "Nobody ever gave a damn about me until this year. B'll take care of her mom and Red and the kid, but if something happens to me, who's gonna take care of you? I don't want you scramblin' around or worryin' about your family. This way, I know you're safe, no matter what."

After a few long seconds, Tara said, "All right."

"Good." Faith took Tara's hand and squeezed it gently. "And I'm buyin' lunch," she added firmly.

Tara giggled, and squeezed Faith's hand back.

When Ms. Brown returned, she had a balding, middle-aged man with her. He introduced himself as the bank manager, and when he tried to take over her transaction, Faith told him, "No offense, but I wanna deal with her," and pointed at Brown.

The manager took it with good grace and backed away. He hovered in the background while she went over everything with them, handing Faith a passbook, checkbook, and envelope containing $500. When she finished, Faith stood up and offered her hand. Ms. Brown shook first Faith's, then Tara's hands, and walked them to the door.

They picked up sandwiches, a salad for Joyce, and drinks, before returning to the gallery. The three of them ate lunch in Joyce's office. The older woman continued to tell them things that needed to be done that week. Tara jotted notes between bites.

When they finished eating, Joyce left them and went home. She found Willow dozing against Buffy on the couch. Buffy held her finger against her lip and pointed from Willow to Dawn, sleeping in the playpen by the stairs.

Mother and daughter talked softly for a few minutes before Willow woke. A knock on the door a few minutes later woke Dawn. Joyce got her while Buffy answered the door. Buffy, smiling, let Liz in.

"Good lungs," Liz smiled at Buffy.

"She's not shy about using them, either," Buffy said.

"Hi, Willow, Mrs. Summers."

"Hello, Liz," Joyce answered, and handed Dawn to Willow. Willow immediately handed her back, grimacing. "Diaper," she said.

"I'll do it, Mom," Buffy said.

"It's all right, Buffy," Joyce answered, and returned to the playpen to pick up the full diaper bag Buffy had put in it when they came downstairs.

While Joyce changed the baby, Liz, and Willow talked. Buffy stayed nearby, looking from Willow to Dawn. Dawn continued to fuss, even after she was changed, and Joyce again brought her to Willow, who thanked her and put the baby to her breast. When they finished, Liz checked Dawn. She pronounced both mother and daughter fine, and after a little more talking, left.

By that time, Dawn was back in Joyce's arms, stretching and making faces.

"Can you watch her for a little while? We need to go to the bank," Buffy said.

"Certainly, honey. I'm sure we'll be right here when you get back."

"Thanks, Mom," Buffy answered, and got up. She helped Willow up before getting their bags.

Joyce watched, smiling at Buffy's ultra soliticiousness, as Buffy hovered around Willow and held the door for her. It continued outside, as Buffy helped Willow into the seat, and drove extra carefully to the bank.

By chance, they approached Melissa Brown, who was again staggered at the number of zeroes on the cashier's check, but had sense enough not to show it. She did what Buffy asked, adding Willow to her accounts and putting the bulk of the money into their savings account for the time being. She suggested some other options, and Willow told her they would make those decisions later.

They were back home within an hour. Joyce was in her chair, holding Dawn, who was again sleeping. Willow took advantage of the quiet to get some rest. She laid on the couch, her head in Buffy's lap, and napped until Dawn's whimpers woke her.

By that time, Joyce was glad to move around. She looked at the time, and told them she was going back to the gallery to pick up Faith and Tara.

She was gone longer than expected, but returned with Faith, Tara, and several bags of Chinese takeout. After they ate, Joyce went upstairs to pack a small bag for the hospital. Buffy followed her upstairs, and sat on the bed and watched. She wasn't sure of what to say to her mother, and was more than a little worried, but tried not to show it.

Downstairs, they watched Animal Planet. When Dawn began to cry, Faith got her, and again changed her diaper before giving her to Willow. This time, when Dawn finished nursing, Faith held her, talking quietly until she went back to sleep. She put Dawn in the playpen, kissed Tara quickly, and said, "See ya, Red," before leaving to patrol.

No one slept well that night. Buffy, worried about her mother, was restless. For all that she tried not to disturb Willow, the redhead slept unevenly. Dawn cried every two hours like clockwork. Joyce found herself awake every few hours, and told herself it was because of Dawn. Faith dreamed about Boston, and her whimpers and thrashing woke Tara each time they drifted off. Despite that, everyone was downstairs early to see Joyce off. A little later, Faith and Tara headed out to the gallery.

Buffy, Willow, and Dawn spent part of their first day alone in the shade in the back yard. Buffy was content to watch them both, and each time she held their daughter, she smiled.

Joyce was groggy when they visited that evening, but with Faith hovering on one side and Buffy on the other, she held Dawn, ignoring the conversation that went on around her. Just after the girls left, Xander came in with some balloons and bad jokes that didn't cover his concern. Faith slipped in again later, during patrol, and watched her surrogate mother sleep for a few minutes before going back out in search of vampires.

They repeated these rituals again on Wednesday, and Thursday. On Friday, Buffy sent Willow and Dawn home with Faith and Tara and stayed to wait for her mother to wake completely after the surgery to repair damaged blood vessels in her brain. Buffy wasn't surprised when Giles appeared and sat with her for an hour or so, or when Faith appeared long after the hospital's curfew.

Faith stayed with Joyce while Buffy went out to patrol for a while. She needed something physical to do after days of rest, and ran through most of Sunnydale, not even bothering to speak to the demons before destroying them. She felt better when she returned to the hospital. She nodded at Faith, and Faith nodded back, and Buffy retook her seat beside Joyce's bed.

Buffy's relief was immense when Joyce woke and asked the time and for a drink. She stepped aside to allow the nurse to check Joyce, then pulled the chair closer and held her mother's hand while Joyce drifted back into sleep.

At mid-morning, Faith and Tara came in and sent Buffy home to sleep and shower. She showered first, then crawled into bed beside Willow. Before she could sleep, Dawn began to cry, and Buffy insisted on getting her. She changed and cleaned her daughter, then brought her to bed. While Willow fed Dawn, Buffy drowsed, and when the baby slept again, both of her mothers slept with her.

* * *

Joyce was released from the hospital on Monday, and Giles brought her home. Buffy hovered around her all week, and Willow looked on with the same amused smile Joyce had worn through most of Willow's brief pregnancy. On Friday, Joyce saw the doctor again, and was given the okay to go back to work, with a long list of stipulations. After the appointment, Buffy and Joyce headed to the mall to buy more sleepers and onesies for Dawn, who had outgrown all but the largest of those purchased before her arrival. They made one more stop before returning home, to purchase formula, cereal, and bottles and a few prescriptions for Joyce.

They arrived home to find both Willow and Dawn crying. Buffy checked Dawn first, and quickly quieted her before handing her off to her mother. Then she picked up Willow and took her upstairs.

Buffy tried unsuccessfully to understand the babble that came out with Willow's sobs before giving up. She made comforting noises and rocked Willow until she settled down.

They were still upstairs when Tara and Faith returned from the gallery. They unloaded the car, and Faith washed and prepared the bottles, and filled half a dozen. She added cereal to two of them. One of those, plus the others went into the refrigerator. Once Faith was satisfied with the temperature of the last one, she took it to Joyce. Dawn emptied the bottle while the three women talked, and Tara unwrapped the pile of clothes.

Dinner came and went with no sign of the couple upstairs, and Faith shrugged and went to patrol. Tara did laundry, and Joyce read, and for the first time, Dawn slept for more than two hours between feedings.

By the time Faith returned from patrol, Joyce was in bed. Tara was on the sofa, waiting for Faith. They talked softly, but the baby woke, and Faith warmed the second bottle containing the cereal mix, and fed Dawn.

"When did you learn how to take care of babies?" Tara asked.

"I used to have a baby brother," Faith answered, and shifted Dawn slightly. She looked at Tara. "And, no, I don't want to talk about it now," she added firmly.

"Not now or not ever?"

Faith looked at her for a second before sighing. "Not now."

Tara nodded, leaned over and kissed Faith's cheek. Faith continued to surprise her with the things that she shared when they were alone. Although she flirted and teased, Faith had made no real effort to move their physical relationship forward. Tara suspected that both Buffy and Willow would be surprised if they knew that, but had no intention of telling them.

Faith finished feeding Dawn, burped her, and did one more diaper check. Then she went upstairs and put the drowsy infant in her crib. Faith tapped lightly on the closed door to Buffy and Willow's room, and opened it without waiting for an answer. Her eyes needed a second to adjust to the darkness, and when they did, she saw Buffy hold a finger to her lips and point at Willow. Faith nodded, and pantomimed the baby in her arms, then sleep, and finally pointed toward the nursery. Buffy smiled and mouthed, "Thanks." Faith nodded and pulled the door closed.

She returned downstairs and found Tara gone. Faith sighed. She had been hoping they would go out for a few hours. She was restless and still had energy to burn, but headed downstairs.

Faith was pleasantly surprised to find that Tara had changed into a shirt that Faith especially liked. She grinned at her girlfriend and asked, "Hot date?"

"So she says," Tara answered with a smirk as she walked toward Faith. She kissed her once, quickly, and grabbed Faith's hand. "Bronze?"

Faith nodded and let Tara lead her upstairs.


	23. Chapter 23

Buffy laid awake and held Willow. Willow's meltdown had shaken her; in all their time together, Buffy had never seen Willow totally lose it. For the moment, Willow was snuggled against her, and Dawn was asleep in her crib. That led to a whole new set of thoughts, wondering about Faith and her ease around Dawn.

Dawn began to fuss, and Willow stirred a little. "It's all right, love, I'll get her," Buffy said quietly and kissed Willow's cheek before untangling herself from the redhead. She got out of bed and went into the room across the hall. Buffy picked her daughter up. "I've got you, Dawn. Be quiet so your mommy can sleep," she said softly. The noise immediately decreased.

Buffy carried the baby to the changing table and rained kisses on the tiny face as she got the baby out of the sleeper. She opened the diaper and was assaulted by a foul odor. "P U stinky baby," she sing-songed and began changing the little girl's diaper. She talked quietly as she cleaned her and put on a clean diaper and sleeper. Dawn was still fussy, and Buffy chuckled when she picked her up. "Your mommy will have to help you with the rest."

They went to the bedroom and got in bed with Willow. Buffy lay the baby between them leaned across her to kiss Willow. "Somebody's hungry," she told Willow when her eyes opened.

"Mmmm." Willow sat up and picked up Dawn. She looked at the baby, then at Buffy. "That's your nose," she told Buffy, then kissed Dawn's nose. Willow got the baby settled nursing and closed her eyes.

Buffy watched them, delighted and content. When the baby finished, Willow put her between them and slid back down on the bed. Buffy's hand was all ready rubbing the baby's back when Willow settled. Their eyes met and they smiled at each other.

"You feeling better?" Buffy asked.

"Yeah."

"What was that?" Buffy asked cautiously.

"Part hormones, part exhaustion, part frustration," Willow answered.

"You really scared me."

"I scared myself," Willow admitted. She looked sadly at Buffy. "This is so hard."

Buffy frowned a little, and moved her hand from Dawn's back to Willow's cheek. "Not so hard."

"I wanna be a good mom," Willow continued, "but I'm just tired all the time. I mean, I haven't even read her a story yet."

"Will, it's all right," Buffy said. "No one expects you to be supermom."

"I do."

Buffy just looked at Willow for a few seconds, and tried to choose her words carefully. "Sweetheart, you only need to be the best mom you can be for her. No matter what we do, no matter how hard we try, we'll never be perfect parents because there isn't such a thing."

Willow reached up and covered Buffy's hand with her own. She smiled a little. "I love you, Buffy," she said, and pushed herself up so she could lean across Dawn and give Buffy a brief kiss. The she lay down and drifted back into sleep.

Buffy mentally gave a huge sigh of relief, and let herself rest, too.

* * *

The next week was quiet, and everyone at Revello Drive was relieved. They got into a routine again: Buffy and Willow spent part of each day in the back yard with Dawn while Faith and Tara continued to go to the gallery with Joyce. That relieved some of Buffy's worry, because she trusted Faith and Tara to make sure her mother didn't overdo.

When they came home each evening, Buffy and Faith sparred in the back yard. Dinner was simple and quick, and afterward, Willow and Buffy were shooed away for time alone without their daughter. When night fell, one Slayer or the other headed out to patrol. Willow kept her laptop downstairs, and she and Tara researched while Joyce played with Dawn, who continued to grow at incredible rate.

After another week, Giles called and said he would be by in the early evening. They waited nervously for him, and apprehension grew when he was accompanied by a woman who was unmistakably another Watcher. Faith and Buffy shot each other uneasy looks while they followed everyone into the dining room.

Giles made introductions, and Jane Parsons got down to business immediately. She told them what the Watchers' Council had cobbled together about the history of the Beast, and even Faith blanched at the damage it had done since being cast from its corner of hell. When she finished, Buffy asked calmly, "Where is it, and how do we kill it?"

"We don't know," Parsons admitted.

"What does it want?" Buffy continued.

"To return home and gain revenge on those who cast it out. It seeks a key."

"A real, physical key or a mystical one?" Willow asked.

"We don't know," Parsons repeated.

"So you came here to try to scare us?" Faith asked.

"No, Ms. Spencer, I came here to share with you what we know, as promised."

"Great. Thanks so much." Faith stood up. "Call me when you actually know something useful." She exited via the kitchen, and moments later, the back door opened and closed.

"That all you got?" Buffy asked.

"About the Beast, yes." Parsons pulled a business envelope from her bag and handed it to Buffy, who sat at her left.

Buffy looked at it. "What's this?"

"I have no idea. Mr. Westrope asked me to deliver it to you."

Buffy looked at Willow, who eyed the envelope curiously, and Giles, who shrugged, before opening it. There were two pages inside, and when Buffy unfolded them, Willow leaned close to read along.

_Dear Ms. Summers, Please accept my congratulations on the recent birth of your daughter, and extend my warm regards to Ms. Rosenberg, as well. I trust that mother and daughter are thriving._

_As the American authorities may not understand your peculiar circumstances, I have taken the liberty of securing a birth certificate for the child. If it is not suitable, or you require other documentation, I will be delighted to assist you in obtaining the appropriate certificates._

_Your servant, Philip Cable Westrope_

Buffy passed the letter to her mother while she and Willow examined a birth certificate showing Willow Rosenberg as the mother and E.A. Summers as the father of Dawn Marie Rosenberg Summers. "Thank you," she said.

Parsons nodded. "I'll be in touch when we have something more," she said, and let herself out.

As soon as she was gone, Tara excused herself. Buffy asked Giles, "How does he know about Dawn?"

"I don't know,' Giles replied. He removed his glasses and began to polish the lenses. "I didn't say anything about your personal life," he reassured her.

"Neither did I, and neither did Faith."

"I suppose they're still watching you. You are the Slayer, after all."

"I'm **A** Slayer," Buffy said emphatically. "And those Council people still creep me out. No offense."

Giles nodded and replaced his glasses.

* * *

Faith paced the back yard restlessly. She had hoped the Watchers' Council would have something new about the Beast, and was disappointed and angry at the lack of information. "A bunch of scary bedtime stories," she thought dismissively. She heard Tara come out the door, and turned toward the house. She waited for Tara to approach.

"You all right?" Tara asked.

"Yeah." Faith ran a hand through her hair. "Just annoyed. She didn't tell us anything we don't all ready know."

"We'll figure it out."

"Yeah."

"She brought something for Buffy, but I couldn't tell if she was happy about it."

"B's not happy with 'em on general principles," Faith answered.

"N-neither are you."

Faith shrugged. "I'm getting' paid enough. I don't have to like any of 'em."

"Do you believe her?"

"Only because what she said is what you and Red found."

"I thought they had resources and things that we don't."

Faith shrugged and changed the subject. "Wanna go out after patrol?"

Tara smiled. "Sure."

"Bronze or late movie?"

"Whichever."

"All right, we'll decide later." Faith looked toward the house. "You think she's gone?"

"She left before I came out. Of the house."

"Let's go see what B got." Faith went toward the house. She caught Tara's hand on the way, and the blonde went with her willingly.

"You did what?" Buffy asked incredulously.

"I think it's a good idea," Joyce said.

"Who did what?" Faith asked as she and Tara returned to the dining room.

"Giles bought the magic shop."

Faith looked at him and shook her head. "Didn't know you have a death wish."

"What do you mean?" Tara asked.

"Place changes hands three times a year. Usually because the owner is murdered in some really gruesome way," Faith explained.

"Exactly," Buffy said triumphantly. "See, it's dangerous."

"Rubbish," Giles answered.

Buffy turned to Willow. "Little help?"

"Are you kidding? Do you know much money I spend in there?" Willow turned to Giles. "Can we bill the Council for what I use helping Buffy?"

Buffy glared at her and muttered, "You're not helping."

"Excellent idea," he said. "As I was saying, I would appreciate some assistance with preparing to open."

"Count me in," Willow said.

"I'll help, too," Tara volunteered. She thought for a moment. "You should call Xander and Anya."

"Yeah, where's he been?" Willow asked. "I mean, he's only seen Dawn once."

"He's working two jobs," Tara said.

"Xander?" Buffy said doubtfully.

"Uh huh," Tara said. "Anya's been looking for a job, too. So Xander can move out of his parents' basement."

"Wow," Willow said softly. She frowned and looked at Tara. "You sure we're talking about Xander? And he's not possessed or something?"

"He's fine," Tara answered. "We had lunch with him yesterday."

Giles cleared his throat, and all eyes turned to him. "Does tomorrow afternoon suit?"

"Yup," Willow answered cheerfully, and Tara nodded.

"Thank you." He stood up. "I have some other things to attend to this evening." To Joyce, he said, "I'll let myself out."

"Goodnight, Rupert."


	24. Chapter 24

As soon as Giles was gone, Faith asked, "What'd they send you this time, B?"

"Birth certificate for Dawn." Buffy held the papers out, and Faith came over to take them.

"Nice," she said after glancing at the document, and handed it back. "I'm goin' to patrol. See you later."

"Be careful," Tara said.

Faith backtracked and kissed her quickly. "Wear the skirt with the swirly thingy," she said in a low voice.

Tara blushed, but smiled and nodded. Faith winked and took off toward the weapons chest in the front room.

Joyce asked Buffy, "What's your problem with Rupert owning the magic shop?"

"It's, like, the second most dangerous place in Sunnydale, right after the hellmouth itself."

"I'm sure Rupert can take care of himself."

"Sure he can, Mom," Buffy answered sarcastically. "That's why they call him a Watcher." She stood up. "I hear Dawn."

Dawn was holding herself upright on the edge of the playpen, and smiled hugely when Buffy approached. She let go of the playpen and raised her arms so Buffy could pick her up. Buffy scooped her up and kissed Dawn's face all over. Dawn giggled, and Buffy's bad mood evaporated.

She sat on the floor with Dawn and played peek-a-boo and patty cake. Buffy pretended she didn't notice her mother with the camera, or Willow smiling happily at them, or Tara watching them.

When Dawn began to fuss, Buffy picked her up. "I'll get her ready for bed," she told Willow.

Willow nodded. "I'll be up in a minute." She got up and went into the kitchen to prepare a bottle. When it was ready, she went upstairs to the nursery. Buffy was snapping Dawn's sleeper by the time Willow arrived, and she had time to settle herself in the rocker before Buffy brought Dawn to her.

While Willow rocked and fed Dawn, Buffy read them a chapter from Laura Ingalls Wilder's Little House series. It was the first thing she and Willow had been able to agree on, and only after extensive debate. The stories weren't too scary, were interesting, and not too hard to follow. Buffy was enjoying them, since she hadn't read them when she was growing up. Willow, who had gone through all of them one summer, was happy that Buffy was willing to read them to Dawn.

By the time Buffy finished the chapter, Dawn was finished the bottle, burped, and sleeping on Willow's shoulder. Buffy got up from the floor and put the book in its place, then took Dawn from Willow and put her in the crib. She kissed Dawn's forehead before covering her with the blanket, and she and Willow left the door open when they left.

They went to their room. "You aren't really mad about Giles, are you?" Willow asked. She sat on the bed.

Buffy sighed and sat beside Willow. "Not really. Just worried. I mean, we've had to run down how many demons because of it?"

"Yeah, but he needs something to do. And it will give us someplace to do research besides the dining room table." Buffy didn't say anything, so Willow asked, "You're going to help, aren't you?"

"Yes," Buffy answered grudgingly.

"Thank you." Willow kissed her cheek.

"That's all I get?" Buffy mock pouted.

Willow smiled and slid closer. She slid her arm around Buffy's waist and put her head on Buffy's shoulder. "For now. Unless you're very, very good."

"I've been good," Buffy answered. "I didn't insult that Council person once."

"Do you think the birth certificate is valid?"

"I don't know. It looks real enough to me."

"She's growing so fast."

Buffy smiled, as she always did when Dawn was mentioned. "I know. She'll be talking soon."

"We're going to have to teach her at home," Willow said.

"I kinda figured that."

"That's another reason to move research central out of here."

"We could get our own place," Buffy suggested.

Willow thought for a few seconds before answering. "Until we get this Beast thing under control, I think everyone is safer if we stay together."

"All right," Buffy agreed reluctantly. "But after we get rid of this thing, we're going house hunting."

"Agreed." Willow turned away and yawned. "Sorry," she apologized.

"It's all right." Buffy kissed her gently, then stood up. "I'll be watching TV." She bent down and kissed Willow once more. "Sweet dreams."

* * *

Faith was later than usual, and Tara paced the living room anxiously. Both Joyce and Buffy had gone up to bed early, and Tara expected Faith to return by 11 p.m. By 11:30, Tara was trying calm herself. At 11:40, she heard uneven steps on the porch. She waited for the door to open before moving toward it.

Tara caught Faith as she stumbled in. Tara kicked the door closed and helped Faith to the small bathroom under the stairs. "Oh, sweetie," she said sympathetically when she saw Faith's face.

"Should see the other guy," Faith slurred and slumped forward.

Tara pulled the first aid kit out from under the sink and threw some washcloths up into the bowl. She turned the water on briefly to get them wet before turning her attention to Faith. Tara knelt in front of her. "Pick your head up, sweetie."

Faith forced herself to sit up. She inhaled with a hiss when Tara touched her split lip with the cloth. A cut over Faith's left eye bled freely, and Tara folded the washcloth into a rectangle. She placed it over the wound and put Faith's hand in place over it.

The more she tried to get a handle on Faith's injuries, the more overwhelmed Tara became. She finally rocked back on her heels. "I need some help," she told Faith. "Will you be all right here for a minute?"

"Get B," Faith said thickly.

"All right," Tara agreed. She hurried from the bathroom and Faith leaned back against the toilet tank with a groan.

Buffy was the first one on the bathroom. "What got you?"

Faith shrugged. "Knights."

Buffy frowned. She backed out of the small room so Willow could get in. "She needs stitches in her lip, Will."

Willow didn't say anything at first. She assessed the injuries she could see, mostly bruises, the lip, and whatever was under the bloody cloth Faith held over her eye. She turned around. "We need some space, Buffy. Take her to the kitchen. I need some things from upstairs."

Willow left, and Faith let Buffy hoist her to her feet. Once they were clear of the bathroom, Tara got on Faith's other side. In the kitchen, they put her in a chair. Tara stood behind Faith and stroked her hair.

"Doesn't look too bad," Buffy said. "Couple bad cuts and a concussion."

"Rib," Faith added as Willow came in carrying the large first aid kit from the upstairs bathroom.

Willow put the bag on the table and opened it. She pulled out a sponge holding threaded needles and looked at Faith speculatively. "This is going to sting. Do you want a shot?"

Faith shook her head. The room swam and she closed her eyes.

"Put your head back," Willow instructed, and Faith laid back against Tara. Willow went to work then. She opened a small packet and removed a square. The smell of alcohol and disinfectant filled the room. Willow pulled a small bottle from the bag and added some of it to the cloth before gently wiping Faith's lip clean of dried blood. She moved the Slayer's hand. Buffy took the bloody cloth to the sink and began to rinse it with cold water while Willow cleaned around that cut. It was bigger, and still bleeding, so Willow began stitching it first.

Faith stayed still. Tara held her head, although it wasn't necessary, and watched Willow put seven stitches through Faith's eyebrow and down beside her eye. Her lip only needed four stitches.

Willow put the needle aside and asked Faith, "What's your name?"

"Don't wanna play, Red."

"C'mon, Faith, you know the drill," Buffy said. "Where are you?"

"Home."

"What's today?"

"Thursday. Friday."

"How many fingers?"

Faith opened her good eye cautiously. "Trick question," she answered Buffy, who had her hands at her side.

Buffy grinned with relief. "Want some help getting downstairs?"

"Yeah." Faith sat up slowly.

Buffy moved to her side and helped Faith to her feet. Tara slid the chair aside and moved so Buffy and Faith could turn. Willow put her hand on Tara's arm and held her in place until Buffy and Faith were on the stairs.

"You need to wake her up every hour or so and make sure she's oriented. She needs to tell you who she is, who you are, the day and maybe the date, and where she is. If you need us, just yell."

"She hasn't looked like this since…" Tara trailed off.

"Yeah," Willow said sympathetically. "She got over that, and she'll get over this."

"Ok," Tara said, and went downstairs.

Faith was sitting on the bed. Buffy stood in front of her, listening. Faith stopped talking when she saw Tara.

"I'll talk to Giles," Buffy told Faith. She turned to Tara. "Get us if you need us."

"Thank you."

Buffy nodded and went upstairs. She closed the basement door and watched Willow clean up and repack the kit. "You and Tara should probably put one of them in the downstairs bathroom and the basement."

"Yeah," Willow agreed. "What got her?"

"Knights. Horses, armor, swords, the whole bit."

"Wow, she really took a hit to the head."

"I don't think so. I mean, yeah, she got hit, but I think that's what she saw."

"Sounds like something Giles needs to check out."

"We'll tell him when we see him." Buffy yawned and looked at the clock. She opened the refrigerator and pulled out a bottle and put it in the microwave while Willow closed the case.

Buffy took both the bottle and the first aid kit. She ushered Willow ahead of her through the first floor and up the stairs. Buffy put the first aid kit down by the bathroom door, and they both went into the nursery.

Dawn was standing expectantly in her crib, and held her arms out to be picked up as soon as she saw her mothers. Willow lifted her and carried Dawn to the changing table. She changed her diaper quickly and put her in a onesie. The sleeper, its feet blown out since they put Dawn to bed in it, went into the trash with the diaper. Willow handed Dawn off to Buffy, who waited in the rocker.

Buffy rocked, Dawn drank, and Willow straightened the blankets in the crib. Dawn fell asleep before finishing the bottle, and Buffy put her back in the crib and covered her. She and Willow returned to their bed, and fell asleep quickly.


	25. Chapter 25

Downstairs, Tara helped Faith out of her patrol clothes and into shorts and a sleep shirt. One side of Faith's torso was a massive bruise, and after she saw it, Tara was extra careful as she got Faith settled in bed.

Tara sat cross-legged on her side of the bed and watched Faith. She held one of Faith's hands, and tried not to jump at every groan Faith made as she shifted. Seeing Faith badly beaten again shook Tara, and made her wonder again how Willow stayed so calm every time Buffy walked out the door.

After an hour, Tara's thoughts were still in turmoil. She stroked Faith's cheek gently, and Faith opened her good eye and squinted at Tara. Without waiting for Tara to ask, Faith said, "I'm Faith, you're Tara, I'm home in bed, it's Friday morning. Now lemme sleep."

Tara giggled, and some of the tension left her.

"What?" Faith growled.

"Nothing," Tara said softly. She leaned over and kissed Faith gently on the uninjured side of her mouth. "Rest." Tara laid down beside her.

"C'mere," Faith said, and raised her arm. Tara gingerly moved closer. Faith's arm closed around her, loosely at first.

"I don't want to hurt you."

"Doesn't hurt," Faith lied, and pressured Tara closer, until they were in their usual position. Faith was on her back with her arm around Tara, who rested her head on Faith's shoulder and one hand on Faith's far hip. "Better," Faith said.

"You scared me," Tara said.

"Talk later," Faith answered, and yawned hugely. "Ow."

"Rest," Tara repeated. She began to hum quietly, and Faith fell more deeply asleep. Tara stayed awake, half her mind on helping Faith heal, the other half weighing love against fear.

When the alarm went off, Tara rolled to her side of the bed, where it was kept for its own safety, and turned it off. She got out of bed and stretched before turning to look at Faith, who slept, snoring softly. Her face was nearly healed, but Tara knew her side would need at least another day. She put on her robe and went to Faith's side of the bed. She leaned down and kissed her gently. "I'll be upstairs," she said softly, and went up to the kitchen.

Tara started coffee, then got the newspaper. She poured a glass of juice before sitting down. A few minutes later, a sleepy Buffy shuffled in to prepare a bottle for Dawn. "How's Faith?" Buffy asked after starting the microwave.

"She's fine. She's asleep."

"Good. She'll heal quicker that way." Buffy stretched. "Guess I better go with Mom this morning."

"Yeah," Tara agreed.

The microwave beeped, and Buffy removed the bottle. She shook it before testing the temperature on her wrist, and left without saying anything more. Joyce came in next, dressed and ready for work. She greeted Tara, then asked, "Where's Faith?"

"In bed. She got kinda beat up last night."

"Is she all right?" Joyce asked, and when Tara nodded, she asked, "How are you?"

"I'm ok," Tara answered.

"You sure?"

"No," Tara admitted.

Joyce sat down with her coffee cup. "What's wrong?"

"How do you do it?"

"Watch them come home hurt?"

Tara nodded again.

"You never get used to it. It's just one of the things that go with the job." Joyce sighed. "I wish I could say something helpful, Tara, but I can't." Joyce reached across the table and squeezed Tara's hand. "When I found out that Buffy was the Slayer, I didn't handle it well. I forbade her to do her duty, and told her not to come home if she was going to continue. That was the biggest mistake I ever made. Since then, I've tried to do what I can to help. Rupert and Willow patch her up, and I pay the doctor bills when they can't, and every night when I go to bed, I pray she'll be here when I wake up."

* * *

Buffy brought Dawn back to bed, and Dawn laid back on the pillows to drink her bottle. She kicked at Willow to wake her after Buffy stopped her from hitting Willow's sleeping head with the bottle.

"I'm awake," Willow protested, and pushed herself up on her elbows. "Happy now?" she asked her daughter, who answered with a big smile.

"Good morning, sweetheart." Buffy leaned over and kissed Willow.

"Mmm, hey, baby."

"I'm going with Mom this morning, ok?"

"Yeah." Willow sat up and stretched. "We'll come see you before we go to the Magic Box."

Buffy rolled her eyes, but said, "All right." She went into the bathroom and showered quickly. By the time she returned to dress, both Willow and Dawn were drifting back to sleep. Buffy dressed and headed to the kitchen.

"Hi, Mom," she said cheerfully.

"Good morning, Buffy."

"I'm your help today. Faith's kinda messed up." Buffy dropped some bread in the toaster and got a mug for her coffee.

"So I heard. What happened?"

"I'm not sure, exactly. We'll talk to Giles about it later." Buffy stirred sugar into her coffee, and got milk and juice from the refrigerator. She poured milk into her coffee and got a glass of juice. She put them on the table and got a plate just as the toast popped up. "Tara go back to bed?"

"I think so."

"Good." Buffy sat down. She took the knife from her mother's plate and used it to spread strawberry jam on the toast.

"She's upset about what happened last night."

Buffy nodded, but didn't speak until her mouth was clear. "Will had to put some stitches in. Don't worry," she added hurriedly, "No blood on the carpet."

"You might talk to Tara later."

"About Faith?"

"More about Slaying."

"You don't think that'll make things worse?" Buffy asked skeptically.

"Maybe Willow, then."

"All right," Buffy agreed. "She and Dawn are coming down to the gallery this afternoon. I'll talk to her then."

* * *

Just after 1 pm, Faith, Tara, Willow, and Dawn arrived at the gallery. Joyce was with a customer, and they went to her office to wait. Faith went to the storage room, where Buffy was uncrating a metal sculpture.

"Hey, B."

"How you feeling?"

"Sore, but all right. Red did a good job on the stitches. You can hardly see where they were."

"Good." Buffy pulled away the last wall of the crate and stepped back. "This is one of the ugliest things I ever saw."

Faith shrugged. "No accountin' for taste."

Buffy put the pry bar on the shelf and began stacking the remains of the crate against the wall. "Tara was kinda freaked last night."

"Yeah." Faith watched Buffy work. "She's all right now."

"You sure? Mom asked me to ask Willow to talk to her."

"I don't think it'll make a difference." Faith eyed the sculpture critically. "Man, that's ugly. Bet it'll sell in a heartbeat."

"As long as I don't have to deliver it."

"I hear ya."

"Yeah, yeah." Buffy went into the hall, and Faith followed her to the office. "Hi, sweetheart," Buffy greeted Willow, and gave both she and Dawn a kiss. "Hey, Tara."

"Hi, Buffy."

"We're going to the magic shop to help Giles," Willow said. "C'mon over when you're ready."

"As soon as Mom tells me where to put one thing," Buffy answered.

Tara and Willow, pushing Dawn in the stroller, left the office. Joyce excused herself from her customer for a moment to bend over the stroller and give the baby a hug and kiss before the women left.

Faith got the duster and headed up to the balcony to dust while Buffy returned to the storeroom to carry the trash out to the alley. She grinned in relief at the fading blue paint marking the water line, and made sure the door was securely locked when she finished. Then she went to the office, where her mother was writing out a receipt.

"Do you know where you want that metal monstrosity?" Buffy asked.

"Just a minute, honey," Joyce answered distractedly. She finished the receipt and took it out on the floor, where her customer signed it. They exchanged papers, a check for the receipt, and the customer left. Joyce came back to the office and put the check in a desk drawer. "What did you ask?"

"Where do you want that sculpture?"

"I think right in the middle of the main floor. It's so dramatic."

"It's something, all right," Buffy said. She got up and went to the storeroom. Faith watched from the mezzanine as Buffy wheeled it out onto the floor. Once Buffy had it where Joyce wanted it, Joyce called up to Faith to adjust the lights. After a few changes, she was satisfied.

Buffy returned the handcart to the storeroom. Her mother was busy with another customer, a blonde woman in high heels and a tight red dress, so Buffy waved before slipping out the door. Faith looked down occasionally, but mostly moved from piece to piece, removing invisible dust.

The magic shop wasn't in as bad a condition as Buffy expected. Dawn slept while the adults cleaned and sorted. Dawn woke at 4:30, took her bottle without fussing. She held it herself and her head swiveled around as she took in her new surroundings. She was finished with her bottle and beginning to fuss when Faith came through the door. Dawn threw the bottle in Faith's direction, and she caught it easily.

Faith walked to the stroller and knelt in front of it. "You shouldn't throw things," she scolded gently while releasing the straps. She picked Dawn up and stood with a grunt. "They aren't paying any attention to you, are they?"

Joyce came in behind her and took Dawn from Faith, who looked around until she located everyone. She approached Tara first, and greeted her with a hug. "Hey."

"Hey," Tara answered, and kissed Faith quickly. "How're you feeling?"

"Better."

"Good." Tara smiled. "I'm almost finished."

"Anything I can do to help?"

"Not really."

"All right. I wanna talk to B anyhow." Faith pecked Tara's cheek before turning to leave. She found Buffy and Willow in the back room with Giles, discussing how to turn it into a training area. Faith joined the discussion, and when they finished, they went back into the main part of the store, where Tara and Joyce were talking around Dawn's head.

"B, that hot blond chick who was there when you left bought that sculpture."

"You're kidding, right?"

"Nope." Faith grinned. "I couldn't believe it, either, but she opened her bag and paid cash for it. Said she'll have somebody pick it up tomorrow morning."

"Wow. I guess now we know why Mom never took me on buying trips." She looked at Faith again. "Cash?"

"Cash," Faith confirmed. "We went to the bank before we came here."

Giles agreed to join them for dinner, and he, Faith, and Tara went down the street to the Italian restaurant to place their order. While they waited for the food to be prepared, they sat in the bar. Giles and Tara had a glass of wine and Faith ordered a beer. While they waited, Faith told them about her meeting with the knights. When she finished describing them, Giles removed his glasses and began to polish them while he speculated about the significance of Faith's encounter.

By the time they arrived at the Summers house, the table was set. While Tara and Faith unpacked the food, Buffy got drinks for everyone and Willow put Dawn in her high chair so she could join them at the table. Dinner was boisterous, with more than one conversation going on all the time, and Dawn making a huge mess with spaghetti.

Faith volunteered to clean Dawn up, and Tara went upstairs to help her. Buffy and Willow cleared the table while Joyce and Giles went into the living room to talk over what was left of the second bottle of wine opened that night.


	26. Chapter 26

"You want to go with me tonight?" Buffy asked Willow across the dishwasher.

"I don't know," Willow said hesitantly. "Dawn," she began.

"Mom and Faith can watch her," Buffy interrupted.

"Did you check with them?"

"Yeah," Buffy admitted. When Willow raised an eyebrow, she continued, "Earlier. They said no problem. Mom said she'd love to, and Faith said, and I quote, 'five by five, B'."

"Okay," Willow agreed.

"And maybe a little Bronzing after?"

"Maybe." Willow smiled. "I point out, though, that regular people go on dates."

"We're not regular people. And Xander and Anya will save us a table."

"Been planning this long?" Willow asked.

Buffy laughed. "Busted."

Willow smiled at her and closed the dishwasher. "I'll change while you finish up in here."

"Deal."

Thirty-five minutes later, Buffy and Willow left. An hour and a half later, in the third cemetery of the night, Willow put her hand on Buffy's arm and said, "I smell smoke."

Buffy stopped and sniffed the air. "Me, too."

They walked upwind cautiously. The cemetery was bordered by woods on the side farthest from the road. Smoke was visible by the time they reached the low stone wall that marked the graveyard boundary. Buffy wanted to check it out, but Willow held her back.

"Will," Buffy protested.

"We'll all come back tomorrow," Willow insisted. "You saw what they did to Faith."

Buffy tried one more time. "What if they take off?"

"Where else would they go? L.A.? You know weird stuff gravitates here."

"All right," Buffy gave in. They walked toward the center of the cemetery, but she looked over her shoulder several times.

"What?" Willow asked after the third time.

"We're being followed."

"I miss patrols when we actually staked vampires."

Buffy snorted and grabbed Willow's hand. "You're not the only one." Buffy raised Willow's hand and kissed it. "When I count to three," she added in a lower voice, "go stand by that crypt."

"Got it."

"One, two, three." Buffy released Willow's hand and they separated. Buffy spun around and sprinted in the direction they had come. A few seconds later, Willow heard a tremendous clatter. Within a minute, that noise grew louder and closer.

Buffy came into sight, an ambulating suit of armor in front of her. Willow heard Buffy's voice, followed by muffled responses. Buffy stopped in front of Willow and forced the metal clad captive to its knees. "Take off the helmet," Buffy instructed.

Willow did, carefully. She examined his face. He was clean-shaven and his hair was short. There was a circular tattoo on his forehead, and Willow memorized it before saying, "Buffy, he's human."

"What's your name?" Buffy demanded. When she didn't get an answer, she forced his arm further up his back. "If you want, I can just pull this," she said, putting extra pressure on his shoulder, elbow and wrist, "off and beat it out of you."

"Roland," he grunted, and she reduced the force on his arm.

"And you're following us through a cemetery why?"

"Orders."

"From who?" When he didn't answer, Buffy told Willow, "Take his sword and that knife."

"No," Roland protested, but stopped with a groan when Buffy reasserted her hold on him.

Willow unfastened the leather belt that held the scabbards for his sword and knife. She tossed it a few feet away without examining the weapons. Buffy forced him to his feet. "Here's the deal, Roland. You tell whoever told you to follow us that it's not nice to chase girls around in the dark. If he wants to talk to me, we'll be right here at 4 o'clock tomorrow afternoon. Otherwise, you need to pack up and head out. Got it?"

"Yes."

Buffy released him with a shove. He stumbled, but didn't fall. He turned, and Buffy threw him his helmet. "We'll give your weapons back tomorrow."

Roland caught the helmet easily. He stood and watched them leave the cemetery with his blades slung over Buffy's shoulder.

Buffy took Willow's hand again. "That was weird."

"Uh huh," Willow answered distractedly.

"What?" Buffy asked.

"I saw that mark before. The one on his forehead."

"He had a mark on his forehead?"

"A tattoo," Willow said. "I've seen it somewhere. Maybe in one of Giles' books."

"Crap," Buffy answered. "It couldn't just be overzealous re-enactors on vacation or something. No, it has to be hellmouth crazies," she complained.

"What did you expect?"

"I thought we'd stake some vampires, catch the band at the Bronze, make out a little when we got home," Buffy said.

Willow laughed. "Next time, you should post our plans at Willy's so the demons will cooperate."

"Ha ha."

Willow laughed again and kissed Buffy's cheek without breaking stride.

* * *

Everyone, including Dawn and Giles, was in the living room when they returned.

"There goes the rest of the night," Buffy muttered.

Willow squeezed her hand sympathetically. "On the bright side, you can tell them about Roland."

"Who's Roland?" Faith asked first.

"One of the knights you met last night," Willow answered.

Buffy handed the belt to Giles. He looked from it to her questioningly. She shrugged. "Didn't seem like a good idea to let him keep them."

"Start at the beginning, please," Giles asked.

"We were going through the cemetery over on Sequoia and we smelled smoke," Buffy began. "So we followed it to the woods. I was going to check it out, but Will said we should all go together during the day. When we were leaving, I heard him following us, so I introduced myself. We're supposed to meet his boss over there at 4 tomorrow afternoon."

"He was alone?"

"Apparently."

"Fascinating." Giles removed the sword from the leather scabbard. It was in excellent condition, sharp and bright, with engraving running its length on both sides. Just below the hilt was a maker's mark with the year 730AD. He frowned at it while running through his knowledge of history.

Buffy rolled her eyes and went to her mother. Dawn immediately raised her arms toward Buffy. "And what are you still doing up?" Buffy asked her rhetorically.

"Totally forgot the bottle, my bad," Faith said, and got up.

Buffy took Dawn. "I'll get it."

"He had a tattoo," Willow told Giles.

"Oh?"

"I've seen it somewhere before. Willow went to the phone and picked up the pen. She leaned over the table to sketch the design onto the message pad. When she finished, she removed that page and gave it to Giles.

He looked at it for several seconds. "Sorry, I don't recognize it. But we can look for it."

"Tomorrow," Joyce said firmly as Buffy returned from the kitchen. "It's late."

"Of course," Giles said, and got to his feet. "I hadn't realized. Thank you for a lovely evening."

"You're welcome," Joyce answered as she rose from her chair. She walked Giles to the door, where they said good night again. Before heading up to bed, she told the four young women, "Don't be too long."

They answered with a chorus of good nights. Tara and Willow returned to discussing the tattoo design. Faith looked at it and shrugged before turning to Buffy, who was holding Dawn and her bottle. "Why didn't they kick your butt?"

"I don't know." Buffy jiggled the bottle to keep Dawn's attention. "Maybe because it was just him and I snuck up on him."

"Get out."

"Nope. I circled back and got him from behind."

"So they're human?"

"That one was."

"Guess we'll find out about the rest of them tomorrow."

"That's the plan," Buffy agreed. "How was Dawn while we were out?"

"She's no problem."

"I never thought you'd like kids."

"Lotta things you don't know about me," Faith grinned. "Besides, somebody has to teach her important stuff, right Dawnie? High five." Faith presented her hand to the baby, who promptly swiped at it with her own.

"I don't believe it," Buffy laughed. "Show Will."

"Show Will what?" Willow looked up from the paper she and Tara were sharing, on which Willow had again drawn the emblem on the knight's head.

"Check this out. Go ahead."

Faith repeated their routine, and Dawn performed on cue.

"Cute," Willow said, smiling, although her mind was still on the design, and she returned to it immediately. She and Tara continued to dissect the elements of the symbol while Dawn finished her bottle.

Faith took the empty bottle from Buffy and took it to the kitchen. She rinsed it and put it in the dishwasher. She was about to return to the living room when Tara came in. "Ready for bed?" Faith asked.

"Mmm hmm," Tara answered through a stifled yawn.

Faith smiled and flicked off the light over the sink, leaving the first floor dark. She gave her eyes a few seconds to adjust before going to Tara. "C'mon, then," she said, and put her arm around Tara's waist. They crossed the kitchen, and Faith opened the basement door. She went down the stairs first, Tara behind her with one hand on her shoulder.

Upstairs, Buffy put Dawn in her crib and covered her. She stood beside her daughter's bed for a few minutes and watched her sleep. She was still astonished that she and Willow had a daughter together, and a little frightened at how fast she grew. The click of a light switch pulled her from her reverie, and she joined Willow in bed within minutes.

Several blocks away, Giles was deeply engrossed in research. He copied the sword, including the engraving on both sides of the blade, at life size, and ended up with several sheets of paper taped together. He also took rubbings of the blade before turning to his books.


	27. Chapter 27

By dawn, Giles knew little more than he had when he started. The sword was old, and its engravings recounted some of its history. Its original owner fought under Charles Martel at the Battle of Tours, and his progeny wielded it in every war involving France since then, including the defense of Paris against the Vikings, all of the Crusades, the Wars of Religion, and the Thirty Years War. Its history after that was less clear, but from its condition, Giles knew that it had been both used and well cared for. He had no more luck with the symbol Willow had copied, and before going to get some rest, he faxed all of the drawings to the Watchers Council.

The phone woke him shortly before noon. Philip Westrope was on the other end. "Where did you get this sword?"

Giles sat up and from habit reached for his glasses. "Buffy brought it home last night."

"Do you have any idea what it is?"

"Apart from quite old, no."

"No weapon like this has been seen outside of a museum in a century. Where did the Slayer find it?"

"She removed it from a man in a suit of armor."

"Excuse me?"

"She removed it from a man in a suit of armor," Giles repeated.

"Did she describe him?"

"Only the tattoo."

"The Slayer took the sword from a tattooed man in armor?"

"Yes. Why so many questions?"

"We need to be certain of what or who we are up against."

"We're supposed to meet with the knights this afternoon. I'll call you afterward."

"I look forward to it," Westrope answered, and hung up.

Giles returned the phone to its cradle and swung his feet to the floor. He sighed and ran his hand through his hair before getting up to begin his day.

"You can't bring Dawn," Buffy insisted.

"You're not going by yourself," Willow answered.

"Giles and Faith are going, too."

"Buffy, I don't trust them. Not Giles and Faith, the knights. Remember what they did to Faith?"

"All the more reason you can't go."

"I'm going," Willow said with determination.

"No, you aren't. I need you and Tara to stay with Mom. Tara can't fight, but you can."

"Buffy," Willow began.

"No," Buffy interrupted. "This isn't a discussion, Willow. We need to know what's up with these knights. Faith and I can take care of ourselves. Giles can handle the talking. I'm not putting anyone else at risk. You and Dawn and Tara are going to the gallery to stay with Mom."

"We're going to talk about this later."

"Fine. I'll get Dawn's bag ready."

Willow glared at Buffy's back as she left the room. "Stubborn Slayer," she grumbled.

Buffy returned a few minutes later with the diaper bag. "I almost forgot, Mom wants you to talk to Tara."

"About what?"

"Slaying. You know, dealing with slaying."

"All right. But we're still going to talk."

Buffy sighed. "I know."

* * *

Giles arrived promptly at 3 p.m., and Buffy was locking the door before he could get out of his car. She installed Dawn's seat in the back of Giles' car, and she and Willow squeezed in beside it, Willow in the middle. Tara sat in the passenger seat. Giles snagged a parking spot in front of the gallery, and Buffy hurried to remove Dawn's seat.

She carried her daughter into the empty gallery. Joyce appeared when she heard the bells on the door. Faith came in from the back a few moments later. Buffy kissed her mother's cheek as she passed. Willow, sulking, followed them to the office.

Faith smiled at Tara. "Hey, Blondie."

"Hey," Tara smiled back and walked to her. "Be careful, please."

Faith nodded. "We shouldn't be long."

Tara brushed Faith's cheek with her thumb and kissed her quickly. "See you soon."

Faith grinned. "Count on it." She winked at Tara and joined Giles. "You ready?"

"Yes." He yawned. "So sorry. Didn't get much sleep last night."

"Why?" Buffy asked.

"I was researching the weapons."

"Did you bring them?"

"In the trunk."

"Cool. What did you find out?" Faith asked.

"Not much. The sword is quite old. It was used at the Battle of Tours." Both Slayers looked at him blankly, and Giles sighed. "I don't know why I bother."

"No, wait, I got it. Stopped the Muslim advance into Europe," Buffy said.

"Very good. Shall we go?"

Buffy smiled. "I paid attention in World History."

"Showoff," Faith teased.

* * *

Once Dawn was settled in Joyce's office, Willow and Tara wandered back to the store room. "How are you feeling?" Willow asked.

Tara shrugged. "All right, I guess."

"You sure? You didn't look so good the other night."

"I hate seeing her like that."

"It's going to happen sometimes."

"I know. I doesn't make it any easier."

"I don't know what to tell you, Tara. Buffy gets better and stronger every day. So does Faith. And she's a lot better than she used to be. I guess she's growing up." Willow turned away from Tara so she wouldn't see her inner conflict. She knew Faith had changed, but she was still angry at her about all the history they shared.

Tara frowned slightly. "Doesn't it bother you?"

Willow turned back to face Tara. "Doesn't what bother me?"

"The, um, blood. Her," Tara trailed off, not sure what she was trying to ask.

"She comes home, it was a good night," Willow said firmly. "I wouldn't have picked this, Buffy didn't pick it. It's just how things are." Willow pushed away from the wall. "Being a Slayer is who Faith is. If you love her, you take a deep breath and accept it." Willow paused for a moment. "You love her, right?"

"Yes."

Willow shrugged. "Then you do what you need to do. When I first met Buffy, she told me, life is short, seize the moment. She meant her life, but I didn't know that right away. I try really hard to make sure that after she's gone, I don't look back and wonder about the things we wanted to do or say. Because she'll die one day. One night. I know that. It scares the heck out of me when I let it, so I try not to let it. Am I making any sense?"

Tara nodded. "Th-there's no middle ground, is there?"

"Not on the hellmouth." Willow looked past Tara for a few seconds, then returned her attention to the other witch. "Buffy suggested we put a bigger first aid kit in the downstairs bathroom and down in your room. I'll show you how to put in stitches. I used to practice on fruit." Willow laughed at the memory. "It's probably my fault Xander doesn't eat fresh fruit, cause every time he picked something out of the bowl, I had been practicing on it."

"Frankenpeach," Tara said with a smile.

Willow laughed again. "That's exactly what he said." She smiled at Tara. "Last chance for serious Slayer issues."

Tara paused for half a minute before answering. "I-I w-w-w-wish," she started, and paused again to curse her stammer. "I think you and Faith need to work out your issues," she said slowly, and her heart fell when she saw Willow close down.

Willow turned her back to Tara. Her eye caught on a large hammer on the wall, and for a moment, Willow fantasized about using it to smash everything in sight into splinters. Then she took a deep breath and brought her feelings back under control. Tara saw the changes, both physically and in Willow's aura, as her emotions changed. Without facing Tara or answering, Willow left the storeroom.

Tara watched her leave, and sighed. Faith and Willow were so alike in some ways, and she was afraid that neither of them would open a door to the other. Tara hated the tension between Faith and Willow. She knew Faith berated herself every day for whatever had occurred between them so long ago; Faith refused to tell Tara anything except that she had deliberately hurt Willow. Tara was equally certain that Willow had never told Buffy the details, and that Buffy was the reason Willow hadn't tried to pull she and Faith apart. "Time," Tara said to herself, and involuntarily wondered how much of it the four of them had.

* * *

They got into Giles' car, with Buffy again in the rear. While they drove to the cemetery, Giles related the rest of what he learned from the sword and the call from Philip Westrope.

"Sounds like Wesley," Buffy said.

"Yes, he did sound a bit like Wesley," Giles agreed. He parked within site of the crypt, and all of them got out of the car. Giles opened the trunk and removed the leather belt. Buffy took it from him, and they walked to the crypt.

A few minutes later, five knights approached in a vee formation. Their heads were bare, and the one at the head of the group wore a cape with a red lining. He was older than the others, had scars on his face, and his tattoo was more ornate than the others'. They stopped a few feet from Giles, who stood between and one step in front of the Slayers.

"Gentlemen," Giles said.

"You have something that belongs to one of my men."

"Yes," Giles agreed. "Introductions?" he suggested.

"Gregor, general of the Knights of Byzantium. We know who you are."

"Then please be so kind as to explain why you harass my Slayers."

"They guard the Beast's Key. The Key must be destroyed, as must all those who align themselves with the Beast."

Buffy stepped forward. "We aren't guarding anything." Giles put his hand on her shoulder but she shook it off. "You aren't welcome here. I have enough problems without a bunch of boys playing King Arthur getting in the way. I was nice last night. Next time, I won't be. Are we clear?"

"As long as you are aligned with the Beast, you are our enemy."

Faith stepped up before Buffy could reply. "We aren't aligned with anyone. Especially not something called the Beast."

"This is not a debate, little girl."

"Call me that again, and you'll find out exactly what a Slayer is," Faith said evenly.

Giles dropped the leather belt to the ground and put one hand on each Slayer's shoulder.

"Stay out of my way," Buffy said, and turned to leave. The others followed her silently. When they reached Giles' car, they stood and watched the knights file back into the woods.

"Who are those freaks?" Faith asked.

"I'm not certain. But we'll find out," Giles answered.

Giles parked across the street from the gallery this time. Once they were inside, Buffy flipped the sign to closed and locked the door. "Mom?"

Joyce came in from her office. "What, Buffy? Hello, Rupert."

"Just checking. Where's Will?"

"They're in my office," Joyce answered, and Faith walked in that direction.

"Ready to call it a day?"

"I think so."

"I see that thing is gone."

"The sculpture? Two very nice men picked it up just after lunch."

"I can't believe anybody bought it."

"One woman's ugly is perfect in another's house. Rupert, will you join us for dinner?"

"Sorry, I have some things I must attend to. Another time?"

"Certainly."

"Buffy, may I have a word before I leave?"

Joyce took the hint and left.

"What?" Buffy asked.

"I don't think either of you should patrol until I find out from the Council exactly what these knights are. I fear they will ambush you or Faith again, and won't stop until, well, until..."

"They kill one or both of us."

"Um, yes."

"Fine. No patrolling until you give us the go ahead. Are we allowed to leave the house?"

Giles rolled his eyes at Buffy's tone. "As long as you are careful."

"Meaning, you'd rather we didn't."

"Yes."

"Monopoly marathon, here we come." Buffy sighed, and unlocked the gallery door. She held it open for Giles, and locked it again once he was gone. Buffy went into Joyce's office. "Giles says no patrolling until he gets the 411 on the shiny metal guys."

"Cool, a night off," Faith grinned.

"Two in a row for you," Buffy pointed out. "Don't get used to it. Especially since we're supposed to stay home."

"You're kidding, right?" Faith asked.

"Nope."

"Guess we better get some movies."

"I'll call Xander and see if they want to join us," Willow added. "If that's ok," she added to Joyce.

"It's fine, Willow. It will be nice to see all of you together again."


	28. Chapter 28

"No answer at Xander's," Willow reported.

"Guess it's just us, then," Buffy answered. She looked at Faith and Tara. "What do you want to do? We've got a closet full of board games."

"B-o-r-e-d games, you mean," Faith interjected. "Besides, we all know Red will beat us."

Joyce watched them. She smiled at the easy interaction between the Slayers and shifted Dawn to her other shoulder.

"Fine. You come up with something," Buffy answered.

"TV," Faith responded immediately, and leaned forward to claim the remote from the coffee table.

Buffy sighed. Willow leaned over and whispered, "There's a big, empty back yard with a comfy lounge."

Buffy looked up at her, smiling. "Smart girls are so sexy." She stood up and took Willow's hand, and led them from the living room. The others watched them go. Faith, who had heard Willow, shrugged, and handed the remote to Tara. Channel surfing was no fun without Buffy there to be annoyed by it. Tara flipped through the channels until she found a National Geographic special on volcanoes.

In the back yard, Buffy bypassed the lounge in favor of the picnic bench. She pulled Willow onto her lap. "Hi."

"Hi," Willow giggled.

"This was a great idea."

"Glad to hear it."

Buffy kissed Willow instead of answering. She loved some of the perks of being a Slayer: awareness of every subtle change in Willow's body as she became aroused was one of them. Willow began to move, until she straddled Buffy, without breaking their kiss. The harder she pressed against Buffy, the more firmly Buffy held her there.

At 9:30, Faith went into the kitchen to get Dawn's final bottle of the night. While it heated, she looked out the back door to check on Buffy and Willow, and grinned at what she saw. They were still kissing, but Faith saw that their shirts were pushed up.

Faith took the bottle to the living room, but found only Tara, who directed her to the nursery. Joyce was changing Dawn's diaper, and Faith lounged in the doorway and watched. When Joyce finished, she sat in the rocker and took the bottle from Faith, who returned downstairs. She flopped on the couch beside Tara and tried to pay attention to whatever it was the witch was watching now.

While she waited for a commercial, she picked up Tara's hand and began to trace invisible designs across her palm. Tara watched her program, but Faith saw her half smile and knew she had the witch's attention. Finally, she pushed the mute button and turned to Faith. "Having fun?"

"Not yet." Faith smiled before leaning in to kiss Tara.

The television show was forgotten by the time the commercials ended. When they came up for air, Tara smiled and said, "Someone's feeling better."

"Uh huh. Except for right here." Faith took Tara's hand and brought it to her lips. "Kiss it and make it better?"

Tara laughed before doing just that. When they parted this time, Tara asked, "Better?"

"A little," Faith murmured.

"What would make it a lot better?" Tara asked, half teasing.

Faith stood up suddenly. "I'll be downstairs."

Tara, confused, watched her go. She got up in a hurry, switching off the TV as she rose from the couch. She turned off two lamps as she passed, them, leaving one on, before going downstairs.

She found Faith sitting on the bed, the room dark except for a nightlight, but didn't turn on the main light. "Did I do something wrong?" Tara asked from the doorway. Faith didn't answer, so she moved closer, within reach, and repeated her question.

Faith looked up at her, and Tara clearly saw the gold flashes in her eyes as Faith shook her head.

Tara sat beside her on the bed and put hand on Faith's back. "Why did you just leave?"

"I, just," Faith stalled while she tried to find words. "You aren't ready," she said finally.

"Ready for what?"

"Everything. Anything. To be mine."

"I don't think you're the one to decide that."

"I felt it, the other night, while you were s'posed to be sleepin'," Faith said.

"I don't understand."

"When I got hurt. You totally flipped out."

"I did," Tara agreed. "I got over it."

"It's going to happen again. And maybe a few more times after that before my luck runs out."

"That's not going to happen any time soon," Tara said firmly.

"But if it's gonna frighten you every time, this ain't gonna work."

"I'm concerned every time you walk out the door that you might not come back. It doesn't mean that I don't want you to or that I don't want to be with you."

"Wantin' somethin' ain't enough to get it."

"I know that. Faith, please look at me," Tara asked. When she didn't, Tara slid from the bed to her knees and looked up at Faith. She waited for Faith to meet her eyes. "I love you. I'm not going to leave you. If they send you from Sunnydale, I will be there the day after school is over."

Faith looked into Tara's eyes. She didn't say anything.

Tara stood up. She knew that Faith needed more than words, and she began to remove her clothing. When she finished, she stood beside the bed and demanded, "Look at me."

Faith did, taking her time as her eyes moved upward from Tara's feet. "You don't have to do this," she said softly.

"I want to." Tara picked up Faith's hand. She kissed her palm before moving Faith's hand to her breast. "I love you."

Faith stood up. She pulled her hand back so she could remove her shirt. A few seconds later, they stood naked in front of each other. Faith reached down without looking and threw the quilt aside. Tara took half a step forward and put her hands on Faith's hips. Faith put her hands on Tara's shoulders, and they looked at each other without saying anything.

Tara broke the silence. "I love you, Faith," she said quietly, and moved as close as she could get to Faith. Her hands slid around and up Faith's back while she kissed her.

Faith's hands moved instinctively, one into Tara's hair, the other down her back. Her lingering doubts disappeared into the pure physical pleasure of Tara's body against her own. She had wanted this since waking up in Willow's guest room to a cool cloth, Tara's warm hands and curious gaze. Faith knew there would be no going back after this, making love for the first time in her life instead of having sex.

Tara pressed her body more firmly against Faith's and let her hands follow the flow of muscles beneath her skin. She ignored for the time being the scars that her fingers found while exploring. Tara slid one hand between them and teased their nipples together. Faith broke their kiss and pushed them onto the bed.

She laid on top of Tara and studied her face in the dim light. Tara smiled at the explosions of gold in Faith's irises each time she blinked, and knew Faith had found whatever she was looking for when she said, "Mine."

"Yours," Tara agreed, and leaned up to kiss her again.

* * *

Buffy stood up. Willow was wrapped around her, and all Buffy wanted was for them to be naked together. She remembered the lounge before she tripped over it, and straddled it before lowering them.

"Thought we were going in," Willow murmured.

"Later." Buffy sucked in a mouthful of Willow's neck, neither of them caring that she would bruise.

Willow's shirt frustrated Buffy, and she tore it open, swallowing Willow's protest in another kiss. Willow tugged on Buffy's shirt, and she pulled back. Buffy pulled her shirt over her head and dropped it on the grass. Her bra and then Willow's followed it.

Buffy raised the lounge arms and laid it all the way back before returning to one of her favorite pastimes. She moved enough for them to lay side by side, kissing and touching each other leisurely.

Buffy found her hand at Willow's zipper and pulled back for a moment. "You ready for this?"

"Um hmm. But you first."

"Anything for you." Buffy hurriedly kicked off her shoes before pushing her pants and underwear down. Then she returned her attention to Willow. She kissed her again, and again while lowering the zipper and pushing her skirt and underwear out of the way.

"Mmm, skyclad," Willow said, and threw her leg over Buffy.

There was no rushing as they enjoyed each other, and it wasn't long before they lost contact with the lounge, as lips and fingers moved in familiar patterns.

Buffy woke just before sunrise, and smiled hugely when she realized where they were. She woke Willow reluctantly, and she lowered them to the lounge with her face hidden in Buffy's neck. "I can't believe we did that," Willow said.

"I can't believe we didn't wake the neighborhood," Buffy answered. She pulled Willow tightly against her. "Put your legs around my waist."

"Buffy!"

"Just do it, Will."

"All right," Willow agreed. She held onto Buffy while the Slayer stood up. "What are you doing?"

"We're going in," Buffy answered as she began to walk toward the back door. It wasn't a difficult trip physically, except for Willow's proximity and the regular movement of her body against Buffy's.

Once upstairs, Buffy laid them on their bed. "Spell," she said quietly, and began to kiss each freckle on Willow's shoulder.

Willow struggled to remember the words. Buffy's hands and mouth were extraordinarily distracting, but she managed to get out the brief phrases. Once she saw the blue glow swarm across their room, she returned her attention to Buffy.

* * *

While Faith slept, Tara examined the scars on her back. Most were long and thin, at angles slightly off perpendicular to her spine. A few were odd, ragged shapes, and there were two that were round. All of them were old. She touched one tentatively.

"Don't," Faith said. She turned her face toward Tara.

Tara moved her hand to Faith's cheek. "Hi."

Faith smiled. "Hi." She turned onto her side and propped her head up. "Why are you up?"

Tara smiled in return. She slid down beside Faith. "You're so beautiful."

"You, too. C'mere." Tara moved closer. Faith pulled her against her body while rolling onto her back. "You feel so good," Faith said. She kissed Tara and insinuated her thigh between Tara's. She rolled again, so Tara was beneath her.

Tara loved how Faith's body felt against hers. She wrapped her arms around Faith and pulled her down. Once she was close enough, Tara kissed her. Faith, concerned that she might be too heavy, tried to roll them onto their sides, but Tara resisted. After a few seconds, Faith gave in and relaxed completely against Tara.

"Mmmm, better," Tara said.

"Not too heavy?"

"Perfect." Tara slid her hands down Faith's back and pulled Faith's hips against her own.

"I'm so glad we're grounded," Faith murmured before kissing Tara. She let down her guards, and was stunned into momentary stillness by the emotions moving between them. Once she was certain everything was fine, she kissed Tara again, and let herself fall into the moment.

Tara felt the change between them. She smiled into their kiss as she began to receive from Faith exactly what she felt toward Tara – passion, and joy, and love – and the last bit of doubt Tara had burned away.


	29. Chapter 29

Buffy's afterglow was chased away by her daughter's annoyed squawking. She looked at the clock before rolling from bed. Dawn had let them have an extra hour, Buffy realized while pulling on her robe.

Willow sat up and stretched. She released the spell before Buffy opened the door, then got out of bed herself. Willow put her robe on and headed downstairs.

The house was quiet and the kitchen empty. Willow prepared a bottle for Dawn and started the coffee maker. She got a tray from one of the cabinets and started adding things to it. Mugs first, and spoons, followed by yogurt, fruit, and napkins. When the coffee finished, she put four slices of bread in the toaster and fixed coffee for both of them. Toast, half buttered, half with jam, was the final addition to the tray.

By the time she returned to the bedroom, Buffy was playing peek-a-boo with Dawn, who crowed with delight at Willow's appearance. Willow put down the tray and handed over the bottle. Dawn threw herself back into the pillows, and Willow handed the tray to Buffy so she could get into bed with them.

The three of them took their time with breakfast. Dawn shared Willow's yogurt and Buffy's toast with minimal mess. When they were finished eating, the three of them headed to the shower.

By the time they got downstairs, Joyce was settled on the couch with coffee and the paper. She put the paper aside to welcome Dawn onto her lap. While Dawn occupied herself with her grandmother, Buffy carried the remains of their breakfast into the kitchen. Willow followed her, and lounged against the counter while Buffy did the dishes. After that, they returned to the living room, where Dawn and Joyce were sharing the comics.

Willow sat nearby and started reading the paper. She looked up each time Dawn giggled. Buffy wandered restlessly from room to room, and hurried to pick up the phone when it rang. A few moments later, she returned to the living room to ask, "Mom, is it ok if we barbeque this afternoon? Xander said he'll bring the grill and some hot dogs."

Joyce looked over Dawn's head. "It's fine, honey. It'll be good to have all of you together."

Buffy went back to the phone. When she finished talking with Xander, she called Giles and invited him to join them. Then she headed upstairs. Two minutes later, she kissed Dawn and Willow goodbye and set out for the market.

Xander and Anya were there when Buffy got back. Tara and Faith were up, and everyone was dressed. Joyce was taking pictures of Xander and Dawn playing together. When Buffy went out to gather the remaining groceries, Faith followed her.

They put the things that needed to stay cold in the refrigerator, and Faith went to the basement to get a cooler. They filled it with ice and drinks and carried it into the back yard.

Faith laughed when she saw the clothing spread across the grass. Buffy blushed and hurried to gather everything while Faith set up the lawn chairs. Buffy was able to slip into the basement and dump the clothing in a basket without being seen, but she knew she hadn't heard the last about it from Faith.

When Giles arrived, they moved outside. Buffy and Willow covered a squirming Dawn with sunscreen before letting her go to crawl, scoot, and roll in the grass. Xander and Faith were on the ground with her most frequently. Anya watched Xander and Dawn play with a curious look on her face, but none of them dared ask what she was thinking.

They lingered in the yard long past sunset, enjoying the weather and time outside without weapons. Buffy and Willow were the first to go in, to put Dawn to bed. Joyce and Giles were next, settling on the couch with glasses of wine. Xander and Anya said goodbye, leaving Faith and Tara alone.

Faith got up from her chair and went to Tara. She leaned over her and said, "I wanted to do this all day," before kissing her.

Tara pushed herself up, and Faith pulled them half a step back so they were wound around each other. When they stopped for a breath, Tara asked, "That all you wanted to do?" through her half smile. Faith's eyes twinkled gold at her and the Slayer chuckled throatily. Tara kissed her deeply before Faith could answer. Faith lifted Tara easily, and her legs circled Faith's waist.

Unless it was a witch thing, Faith wasn't interested in sex under the stars. The next time they came up for air, Faith asked, "Can we go in?"

"Why?" Tara murmured and wound her tongue through Faith's ear. Faith pushed her back just enough. "I'll be quiet."

"Not you I'm worried about," Faith smiled.

Tara smirked back. "Trust me, baby."

"With my life," Faith answered, and let Tara press against her.

From the shadows near the nursery window, Willow watched them. She was angry, and didn't understand why. She backed away from the window with a frown. Rationally, she knew she should forgive Faith and let everyone get on with her life. It was obvious that Faith had grown and changed for the better, but it didn't change Willow's visceral feeling of immediate rage.

She chewed on her lip as she checked Dawn one more time. Her daughter was sleeping, and Willow brushed her fingertips across her head. She was growing so fast. It was unnerving. Willow had mostly raised herself, and in a most sensible manner, but worried that she didn't know exactly how to be a parent. Buffy came in and stood beside her, one arm around Willow's waist, the other beside Willows on Dawn's head.

Willow could feel Buffy's smile without seeing it, and she smiled, too. Buffy leaned her head against Willow's. "Pretty cool, huh?"

Willow relaxed a little. "In a really scary way. You know, like when you're waiting for the other shoe to drop."

"Yeah, I know." Buffy squeezed Willow. "Let's go to bed. You know she won't let us sleep late two days in a row."

"All right," Willow agreed. She glanced outside once more, but saw nothing except lawn, so she turned half way around, keeping in touch with Buffy the entire time, and let the blonde lead her to their bed.

* * *

While Dawn napped after lunch on Monday, Willow researched. The symbol on Roland's head had bothered her since seeing it there, knowing she had seen it somewhere before. Her fingers moved swiftly across the keyboard, as she searched her usual sites.

Buffy watched over her shoulder sometimes, but mostly she dusted and straightened up, and ran up and down the stairs to tend the laundry. She was passing by on her way to the nursery when Willow crowed, "I knew it!"

"Knew what?"

"That tattoo thingy, I saw it before. Just couldn't remember where. Here it is." Willow turned the laptop so Buffy could see the symbol, which wasn't an exact match, but had the basic elements.

"Better let Giles know," Buffy said. "I'll call him." She went to the phone while Willow continued to read. She left Giles a message, grinning as she always did at the exasperated tone on his machine's greeting.

Buffy folded the last load of laundry and put it on Faith and Tara's bed. Then she jogged upstairs, and hurried to the nursery. Dawn was waking up, she knew, and Willow was engrossed in research.

When Buffy stepped into the nursery, Dawn's head turned toward her, and she smiled, showing one new tooth. "Hey, kiddo," Buffy said as she approached the crib. "Ready for lunch?"

Dawn sat up and stretched, and Buffy laughed softly. She waited for Dawn to pull herself upright before offering her hands. "How's your diaper?" Buffy asked rhetorically.

She stripped Dawn and laid her on the changing table, and blew raspberries on her stomach before opening the diaper. "You know, I've killed things that made this big a mess," she teased her daughter, and continued to talk to her while getting her cleaned up and into a new outfit. Although they had just purchased it, it was obvious this would be the only time Dawn wore it. Buffy smiled to herself. "Shopping's always good," she told Dawn and lifted her to her shoulder.

They went downstairs. Buffy expected to find Willow on her computer, but she was in the kitchen preparing their lunch. After they ate, Willow packed up her computer and Buffy packed Dawn and all her accouterments, and they set out for the magic shop.

They let themselves in, and when the bell didn't bring anyone, Buffy yelled. Both Tara and Giles answered, and moments later appeared, one from the book loft, the other from the basement.

"Will found out something about the knights," Buffy said.

"Excellent," Giles answered. He pulled out a handkerchief and rubbed his hands while Willow opened her laptop on the counter. She brought up the copy of the saved page and left him to it.

"I'm still doing inventory in the basement," Tara said.

"I'll help," Willow answered, and they went downstairs.

Buffy leaned against the counter and looked around while Giles read. The store was nearly ready to open, she realized. It needed one more good cleaning before the shelves were restocked. Giles had installed a huge round table in the back third of the store. It was surrounded by chairs that didn't match, but were complementary. They looked comfortable, which would be a welcome change from hours spent in the library's unupholstered seats.

When Giles finished reading, he went behind the counter and picked up the phone. He punched in a long string of numbers and tapped his foot impatiently while he waited for the connection. He gestured to Buffy to turn the computer so he could see the monitor, and she did so.

The conversation was brief, and when he hung up, Giles looked at Buffy. "I could use your assistance with some of the bookcases."

"All right," she answered, and picked up Dawn's stroller. "What was that about?"

"Ah, the Knights of Byzantium. I don't understand why Willow was able to find information about them, yet the Council claims to know nothing."

Buffy followed him into the book loft. Giles suggested that Buffy put Dawn near enough the window that she could see out while they worked, and once Buffy verified that Dawn would be in her line of sight the entire time, placed her where Giles suggested and handed her some of her toys.

Dawn played quietly while Buffy struggled with the huge wooden bookcases. "You could have taken the books out," she complained to Giles.

"You would only complain about reshelving them," he pointed out.

"Uh, yeah, I mean, you're getting free labor."

"Only until we open. Then, Anya will help out here."

"Where is she?"

"Finishing her last few days at her current employment."

"Huh," Buffy grunted, and got the second set of shelves where Giles wanted them.

The phone rang while he gave directions for the next unit, and he hurried to answer it after he finished. Buffy concentrated on what she was doing, and when she finished, turned her attention to Dawn while she waited for Giles to return. Dawn was sleepy, and the second time she yawned, Buffy laid the stroller back so she could nap.

She heard Giles' side of the conversation, and the scratching of pen on paper as he made notes. It was several minutes between the time he hung up the phone and came back upstairs. He didn't say anything about the conversation, so while Buffy moved another bookcase, she asked, "Well?"

"Well what?"

"What did they say about the knights?"

"How did you know I was talking about them?"

Buffy ignored his attempt to redirect the conversation. "What did they say?"

"We should avoid them. They will attempt to negotiate a truce."

"Oh, yeah, and what, they'll get the message in four months?" Buffy grunted with effort as she moved it the last inch.

"Just because they look old-fashioned doesn't mean they are," he lectured.

"Like you, right?"

Giles ignored her and pointed to the last set of shelves. He showed her where he wanted them and stepped out of the way.

When they were finished, Buffy carried Dawn downstairs. She put the stroller down near the table and moved from seat to seat until she found the one she liked best. "Dibs," she called, although no one was near.

The table interested Buffy more than the chairs. It emitted a low level buzz to her Slayer sense, and she carefully examined it. Intricate carvings surrounded the edge, and another ring of them circled the center of the table. She didn't recognize the engravings as letters or shapes, but did look closely at them, and wondered whether any of the others would notice them.

After a few minutes, Dawn began to stir, and Buffy got up to get a bottle from the bag. Tara and Willow came upstairs just as Dawn stretched and woke, and they settled themselves at the table near her while she drank her bottle. It wasn't long before Faith and Joyce wandered in.

"B, that blonde chick was back today." Faith said after she kissed Tara and slid into the chair next to her.

"What, Mom got some more ugly sculptures in?"

"Nah, today she bought ugly paintings," Faith smiled.

"They are not ugly," Joyce said firmly.

"Ugly," Faith and Buffy said in unison. "I'll be delivering them tomorrow," Faith added.

"Wow, Mom, at this rate, you'll be able to retire soon," Buffy teased.

"Be careful what you wish for, Buffy," Joyce answered.

Giles joined them at the table. He removed his glasses and began to polish them. "I spoke with the Council today about the Knights of Byzantium," he started. All eyes turned to him, and he cleared his throat. "They, um, are single-minded in their quest to destroy the Beast, whatever it is, and have been quite ruthless in the past."

"How ruthless?" Joyce asked.

Giles replaced his glasses, but didn't look at her. "They have destroyed entire towns, and overthrown governments. They were last seen during the Inquisition, when they destroyed a monastery deep in the Czechoslovakian mountains, near what is now Kutná Hora, for alleged heresy. That is the last mention of either the Knights of Byzantium or the Key to All Worlds until now."

"Of course they come here," Buffy said. "I hate the Hellmouth."

-30-

* * *

TBC in part 2


End file.
